Shadows of the Empire from Another Point of View
by camcalli
Summary: Luke, Aurora and the rest rush to rescue Han from Boba Fett and Jabba the Hutt. But someone is out to kill Luke. Is it Vader or someone else?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this. It is merely a way to avoid working on an eighteen-page paper.

A/N: I've decided to continue with the events of _Shadows of the E_mpire in my series. It might be a rather short work, as much of the book deals with Xixor and Vader's interactions, which I don't really feel the need to get into, and will actually serve as more of a interlude chapter before _Return of the Jedi_. Still, I felt it was necessary to explain much of the developing relationship between Luke and Aurora. Hopefully, I haven't disappointed anyone; I know some of you really want to get Han back. I also hope to be able to update fairly quickly, but there might be some delay as I'm one semester away from finishing my Master's and just interviewed for a job as a adjunct professor, which means I have to start developing lesson plans and syllabi… oh my!

So, without further ado, I give you Shadows of the Empire from Another Point of View….

_It has been several months since the events of The Empire Strikes Back. Lando and Chewie have been chasing rumors around the galaxy trying to locate Boba Fett and the kidnapped Han, while the others wait with the Alliance. Finally, they locate information that says Fett is on his way to bring Han to Jabba the Hutt. Luke, Aurora, Leia and the two droids meet the others on Tattooine where they set up base in Obi-Wan's old home, and wait….._

Leia tapped her nails irritably against the metal mesh of the tabletop. She was beyond bored. They had been sitting in this despicable bar for more hours than she cared to count, waiting for Lando to arrive with whatever news of Han he had managed to locate. The air was stale and hot, imbued with the unpleasant aroma of overheated beings and spilled drinks of dubious origins. Sweat was trickling down her back, under her disreputable coveralls, and she had sand sticking to any exposed skin. Of which there wasn't much. Not only was it unwise here for anyone unused to the intense sunlight to expose more skin than necessary to its rays, but she was having enough trouble fending off the various males scattered around the cantina without encouraging them by flashing a little skin.

Not that it seemed to matter. She'd had a steady stream of would-be suitors approaching the table since they'd sat down; and this despite the fact that a fully grown Wookiee sat next to her like an oversized chaperone. They usually backed off once Chewie showed them his impressive teeth, but just recently Leia had tried to convince him that she could handle herself and that it didn't require threats to dissuade the hopeful males.

Chewie had snorted out a doubtful comment, but allowed her to try on the next one, a Devaronian. Unfortunately, despite her blatantly hostile replies to his sallies, the red-skinned alien hadn't been persuaded to leave and she had been forced to draw her blaster to make her point more succinct.

A soft chuckle emanated from her other side, and Leia turned a gimlet eye on her other companion.

"Something amusing?"

"Just pondering the vagaries of life, your Highness."

Leia snorted. Like she believed that. "I suppose you think you can do better?"

Aurora Kenobi's smile broadened. "Absolutely." She leaned forward to set the bottle she had been drinking from on the table. "I have, unfortunately, far too much experience in spending time in bars like this. I learned early on how to, ah, _discourage_ overly amorous attention."

Chewie urffed out a laugh and Aurora turned that smile on him. "Well, yes, spending time with the Rogues certainly honed my skills, but I was pretty good at it even before I joined the Rebellion." She turned back to the princess. "You see, Leia, it's all in the glare. Normally, you have a good one. I've seen battle-hardened colonels back down when you gave them the evil eye. But you're uncomfortable here and it shows. You need to relax. All wound up like that, you're just presenting them with a challenge."

Leia studied the other woman where she was kicked back in her chair, one booted foot braced on the edge of the table, her arms crossed casually over her chest. She certainly looked relaxed. You had to look really closely to realize that those casually dangling hands actually rested within inches of her blaster and lightsaber and that one flex of her leg would send her chair flying backwards and away from the entanglement of the table.

Aurora was far more alert than she appeared.

She, on the other hand, probably looked as uptight and ill-at-ease as she felt. She couldn't help it. She was so far out of her milieu; she didn't even want to think about it. Leia made a vague attempt at loosening the tense line of her shoulders, but she didn't think it made much difference. Irritated, she huffed out a breath.

"Fine. You handle the next one. No help from Chewie and no drawing your blaster."

"Deal." Aurora said easily.

Leia's eyes narrowed. "And no using the Force either."

The young Commander's eyes widened in feigned innocence. "Leia, would I use the Force for something to frivolous?"

This time, Leia didn't even bother to snort as she settled back to wait for the show.

Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on your point of view, she didn't have long to wait.

The outer door opened again, letting in a triangle of light and a gust of dry, dusty-smelling air from the street. Two beings entered; one human, one Bothan, both male. They headed immediately for the bar and obtained whatever odious liquor they felt an urge for, before sweeping their gazes around the cantina patrons. As had happened only too often previously, their eyes promptly lit on the table where the two women sat with their furry chaperone and both smiled avariciously. With a nudge to his companion, the human started over immediately.

Aurora didn't move from her comfortable position. She simply stared at the man as he approached the table, a lascivious smile on his face. As far as Leia could tell, she wasn't even really glaring, just this cold, impersonal look.

The man's steps slowed and the leer fell away from his face to be replaced by uncertainty and then, as Aurora raised one eyebrow contemptuously, he turned red and spun on his heel, heading for a dark corner in the table where he could bury his humiliation in cheap booze.

Leia was impressed, despite herself. "Wow."

Aurora possessed herself of her bottle again and took a drink. "Males in a cantina can smell fear. It's an aphrodisiac for them. Never let them see that you are not absolutely in control of any situation, even when you're not." She looked thoughtful for a moment and then amended. "_Especially _when you're not."

Chewie growled a comment and Aurora nodded at him. "True. That would apply in just about any given situation, especially where Han is concerned. Or Lando."

As if on cue, a smooth voice came from behind her. "Did I hear my name? I knew you gorgeous creatures just couldn't keep from talking about me."

Aurora laughed as he slid into the chair across from her. "Actually I believe it was Chewie who brought you into the conversation.

Lando turned to regard him. "Sorry, I retract my comment. Not that you're not a fine specimen of a Wookiee and all that, but you _are_ married."

Chewie urrffed out a laugh and Lando turned back to Aurora. "Now, you, on the other hand, are delightfully unattached."

She smiled at him. "Sorry, Lando. I'm married to my job."

Leia rolled her eyes. "If you two could stop flirting a moment, I'd appreciate hearing what you found out, Lando." She scooted over as Artoo and Threepio, who had followed Lando into the cantina, took up positions on either side of Aurora's chair. Leia noticed that when Luke wasn't around, the little astromech tended to follow in Aurora's shadow, as if she was an extension of his master. She didn't quite know what to make of that. Threepio, on the other hand, she believed, stayed near Aurora because she was his best bet for protection. The protocol droid looked as nervous as it was possible for a droid to look.

The former administrator smoothed one finger over his neat mustache "Of course. Let me grab something to drink to wash all this dust out of my throat and we'll get to it. Anyone else? My treat."

Chewie growled suspiciously.

Lando smiled, flashing those white teeth. "I won a bet with the owner a few years back. Now I get to eat and drink here for free whenever I want."

Leia cast a dubious look around the bar and its denizens. "Have you ever actually eaten here?"

"No, actually. I've never been that desperate. Still, the drinks should be safe."

The princess looked uncertainly into the glass in front of her. She'd yet to take a single drink from it for hygienic reasons.

"I recommend the lomin ale." Aurora said. "It's a light, refreshing blend. Rather young and unpretentious, but with an unusual bouquet and somewhat rough palate. Best of all: it's sealed."

As soon as they had fresh drinks, Lando shared his news. "I think we've got _Slave I_ spotted."

"What? Where?" Leia demanded, sitting forwared.

"A moon called Gall, circling Zhar, a gas giant out in one of the far Rim Systems. The information is thirdhand, but the informant chain is supposed to be reliable."

"We've heard _that_ before." The former senator said scathingly.

Lando shrugged nonchalantly. "We can sit and wait or we can go see. The bounty hunter should have delivered Han to Jabba months ago. He's got to be someplace. I've got a contact in that system, an old gambling buddy who does a little, uh, freelance cargo delivery." He ignored Leia's snort at his polite euphemism for smuggling. "Name is Dash Rendar. He's checking it out for us."

Aurora suddenly sat forward, her eyes narrowed. "Dash Rendar?"

"Yeah," Lando said, surprised. "You know him?"

"Unfortunately. I met him a few years ago, when I was piloting for Gillespie."

"Do you trust him?" Leia asked.

"Oh sure, as long as your money holds out."

"Fine." As much as Leia hated it, it was a fact that the galaxy ran on credits and there were many beings like this Rendar who would do just about anything as long as they were paid enough. "How soon will we know?"

"A few days." Lando answered.

Leia let her eyes drift around the cantina again. "Anything would be better than waiting here."

"Be careful what you wish for." Aurora warned, draining her ale.

Chewie growled a question at Lando.

"I don't know why he'd be there. There's a shipyard on the moon; maybe he needed repairs. Something serious had to hold him up because Jabba won't pay him until he gets here."

Another growl.

"Yeah, I'm afraid so." Lando turned his attention to Leia, explaining. "Gall is an Imperial Enclave. Got a couple of destroyers based there, plus all the attendant TIE fighters. If Fett's ship is there, it won't be easy to get to him."

"When has anything been easy since I met you?" She said resigned, standing up. "Let's go tell Luke."


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this. It is merely a way to avoid working on an eighteen-page paper.

Luke Skywalker turned the page in the book he held, casting an idle glance at the small blast furnace behind him. The yellow light on the front still glowed steadily, indicating the contents were still heating. In another few hours or so, it should be finished, and he could begin polishing and cutting the jewel inside, in preparation for constructing his new lightsaber. He had most of the remaining parts ready and assembled. He only needed a few more items, which Aurora was supposed to be picking up today, and the jewel, and then he could begin constructing the weapon. Although he'd already read it several times, he was checking the schematics in the book he held again, just to be sure he had it correct. It would be rather humiliating to turn on his new lightsaber just to have it blow up in his hand. Not to mention, rather painful. His new hand had just finished final bonding with his arm; he'd hate to have to go through the process all over again.

Besides, what else was there to do, stuck out here in the Dune Wastes?

The others had gone into Mos Eisley for supplies and to pick up Lando. However, both Leia and Aurora had thought it was too dangerous for him to wander around, considering that he was now number one on the Empire's Most Wanted List. He'd pointed out, rather acerbically, that Aurora's name was right below his on that same list and she'd shot back the rejoinder that this wasn't _her_ home planet. She'd had a point, he'd had to admit. Although he hadn't spent a lot of time in Mos Eisley, he certainly had accompanied his uncle Owen there several times and it wasn't out of the question that someone would remember him. Especially considering that Mos Eisley was the nearest large city to Anchorhead and many of the settlement's inhabitants visited the city on a regular basis.

So, here he sat in Ben's too small home on the edge of the Western Dune Sea; trapped on Tatooine, once again waiting for something, anything, to happen. Restless, he rose and began to pace the small confines of the room. He hated being back here; hated the feelings that it raised. Too many memories; his aunt and uncle, Biggs, Ben…

He knew Aurora had picked up on his emotions. He'd seen her watching him carefully the day they landed, but she hadn't said anything, just moved quietly into the house, her face blank.

This must be hard for her too. Here they were, hiding out in the house where her father had lived for so many years; his belongings still stored neatly along the walls. Not that there was much. An old boa-wood trunk had held the most valuable item: an old book, bound in leather, which had turned out to contain all sorts of fascinating information on Jedi training, including the instructions for constructing a lightsaber, which had led Luke to his current project and subsequent waiting.

Finding that book had been an amazing stroke of luck. He'd wondered how he was going to locate a new lightsaber, now that his had been lost on Bespin. It's not as if they were common items. And walking around without one left him feeling curiously vulnerable.

Even more miraculously, the thumbprint clasp which had locked the book had opened when he pressed his thumb to it. Ben must have left the book behind deliberately for him to find. He wondered how Aurora felt about that. Was she jealous? Was it just one more reminder that Ben had abandoned his family in order to spend eighteen years hiding in the desert in order to watch over Luke?

Not that he would ask her. A ripple of depression touched him. There were too many things these days that he couldn't ask her; starting with the big question: could she love the son of the man who had killed her father?

Luke's mind sheared away from that thought immediately; Vader was a subject he absolutely refused to dwell on. Until he could speak to Master Yoda or Ben again, he refused to even consider the possibility that Vader might have been telling the truth on Bespin. Unfortunately, that resolve didn't stop the small insidious voice that whispered Vader had spoken nothing _but_ the truth.

He'd returned to trying to read the book again, as there was nothing else to do, when something brushed against the edges of his mind. He knew what it was; despite everything else going wrong in his life, his connection with the Force seemed to be growing, and it wasn't unusual these days for him to pick up on things through it, even when he wasn't trying. That seemed especially true where Aurora was concerned, and oddly enough, for Leia too, although not as strongly. The implications of _that_ he didn't even want to consider. He had enough problems trying to deal with his feelings for Aurora without adding in his relationship with Leia. There certainly wasn't anything remotely carnal about his feelings for the princess. Those seemed to be reserved entirely for the lovely redhead in his life. However, he did undeniably feel something very strongly for Leia. He just wasn't sure what it was. And trying to figure this out was only going to give him a headache.

With a groan, he tossed the book onto the bed next to him and rolled to his feet. That tingle he'd felt had been Aurora's presence in the Force, which meant she, and presumably the others, were on their way back to the house. He might as well go out and wait for them. It was something to do besides study lightsaber schematics…again.

"Maybe we should call ahead and let Luke know we're on our way back. That way we don't surprise him or anything." Leia called over the wind of their passage.

Chewbacca yowled something at her.

"Probably not a good idea." Lando translated. "Chewie saw a couple of those new Imperial codecracker slicer droids in town; he thinks they might be monitoring local calls. No point in taking any unnecessary risks."

Aurora, seated next to him in the back of the landspeeder they had purchased, glanced away briefly from her contemplation of the passing landscape. "There's no need to call. He already knows."

Lando and Leia exchanged a significant look. Neither of them entirely understood the Force, but both Luke and Aurora had been having moments like this lately, where they displayed inexplicable knowledge. At times, Leia could swear they were almost communicating mentally. She shrugged it off; it was just one more odd thing in a life that had gotten steadily weirder lately. Therefore she wasn't too surprised to see Luke waiting outside the small dun-colored house when they arrived.

Aurora vaulted casually over the edge of the speeder and tossed a package to Luke, who caught it handily out of the air. "Here. I got you the rest of those power cells you needed and found a high-energy reflector cup."

Luke peered into the package. "Thanks. Now I just need the jewel to finish." He glanced over at the others as they exited the vehicle. "Any news?"

Leia climbed out of the speeder in what she was certain was a much less graceful manner than Aurora's exit, feeling gritty and overheated. "Can we continue this conversation inside, out of this blasted heat?"

Luke grinned at her, his teeth looking particularly white against his increasingly tanned face. "Heat? What are you talking about? This is the cool season."

Leia grimaced at his jibe. This hot dustball of a planet's climate might suit Luke just fine, but give her the nice, temperate weather of her beloved Alderaan anytime. At least there you didn't have to cover yourself from head to toe in protection from the sun. She was slightly mollified to hear Aurora mutter something highly uncomplimentary under her breath. More lithe and athletic she might be, but the other woman was even fairer skinned than Leia and had taken to wrapping a hooded cloak around herself when outside. Since this also served to conceal her identity, she didn't complain about it too much. Just made sure it didn't inhibit her access to her blaster or lightsaber.

It was with an audible sigh of relief that Leia entered the relative coolness of the house. Perhaps in a subtle apology for his joke outside, Luke brought her a tall cup of cool water. After finishing it and wiping off the worst of the sand and sweat from her face, Leia felt almost human again. She sat back against the small couch quietly while Lando shared his news about the sighting of Fett's ship.

Luke looked relieved at the concept of finally seeing some action. It couldn't be easy, being stuck out here. When they'd left the Alliance, no one had thought it would take this long for Fett to show up on Tatooine.

"Once we make sure that Fett is actually on Gall, any ideas on how to handle the Imperial Navy?" Leia asked.

Chewie yowled a question.

From his position in the corner, Threepio translated. "Ah, Chewbacca wonders if perhaps the Rebel Alliance might not be willing to help, given Master Han's services to them."

Aurora and Luke exchanged a glance. "I'm sure the Rogues will." Luke said.

"Provided someone in a position of, ah, leadership, requested their assistance." Aurora added, raising her brows at Leia.

The princess nodded. "I'll speak to General Rieken."

"And in the meantime?"

"In the meantime, we wait." Leia said firmly.

Luke sighed. "Great."


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Much thanks to princessofthescoundrels for catching my mistake in the summary. I've corrected it. That's what I get for trying to write the summary while watching David Bowie videos on Youtube…

Also, someone expressed some confusion over the chronology of this story. It's based on the novel _Shadows of the Empire_ by Steve Perry which is part of the EU book series. _Shadows_ takes place between _Empire _and _Jedi_ and kind of explains what everyone else was doing while poor Han was waiting to be rescued.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this. It is merely a way to avoid working on an eighteen-page paper.

_Page break _(A/N I'm going to have to use this asinine method for indicating breaks in the

narrative because for some reason, this damn site removes every page

break I put in. We'll see if it removes this one too.)

A day later and they were still waiting. Fortunately, the blast furnace had finished and the jewel had turned out perfectly, so Luke had something to keep himself occupied. He had polished it and now it just needed to be faceted before he could set it in the half-constructed saber. Luke was currently doing just that; it was getting trickier now that he had made the initial cuts. One slip and he'd have to start all over again. Unfortunately, he was slightly distracted as he couldn't help but notice that somehow the jewel had turned out to be the exact shade of Aurora's eyes, which was just a little more than disconcerting. Especially since that little fact kept dragging his mind back to her. He glanced over his shoulder now at where she was reclined on the couch. She was reading something on a datapad, a slight frown creasing her brow, one leg bent at the knee, the other dangling off the cushions. In the heat of the room, she'd pulled off her boots and socks, and how pathetic was he that he could find the sight of her bare feet unbelievably arousing?

It was a good thing that Chewie was sitting at the table next to him, watching his progress, or who knows what he might do. Even the knowledge that Leia was napping in the other room might not be enough to inhibit him.

Aurora forced herself to read the paragraph in front of her again. She had managed to read it three times already without being cognizant of a single word. The problem was she was entirely too aware of Luke sitting across the room working on his lightsaber crystal. She could just barely manage to keep from looking at him constantly, but his presence in the Force swirled around her, calling to her, even when she wasn't trying to reach out to it.

She was aware that she was frowning, but she couldn't seem to help it. Her hyper-awareness of him at all times was becoming increasingly irritating. It seemed no matter what she was doing her eyes were automatically drawn to him. Let him speak about anything, no matter how innocuous, and her ears automatically tuned in.

She thought maybe it was because their relationship was so ill defined currently. There had been no mention of what had happened between them on Dagobah, and since Bespin, Luke had made no attempt to initiate anything else, nor had she for that matter. They were both walking on eggshells around one another and it was making them both tense. She thought that maybe the others were picking up on it too. Once or twice she had seen Chewie watching them carefully, his wise blue eyes curious. Leia too seemed puzzled by their behavior. Not that she seemed to have any idea that anything of that nature had happened between them, but the close camaraderie that had developed between the two of them over the past few years was currently absent. The change in their relationship had to be obvious to everyone.

Luke stretched his arm out to reach a tool at the edge of the table, and her eyes automatically lifted to him, unwillingly noticing how the muscles in his back moved under the thin shirt he was wearing.

Aurora huffed out a breath and forced her eyes back to the datapad in her lap. This was getting ridiculous and rather pathetic. Had she no will power or self control? He wasn't even doing anything provocative, and yet the images that were being conjured up in her brain just from watching his hands as he worked were becoming down right obscene. This had to stop. It was already hot enough in here without any help from her overactive libido. Taking a deep breath she glued her eyes to the words on the pad and vowed not to look up again, no matter what.

Both of the human occupants of the room were truly relieved when Chewie suddenly glanced towards the door and announced Lando's arrival.

Aurora glanced up from the datapad as the gambler came through the door, a broad grin plastered across his face. "I just got a coded call from Dash Rendar. That _is_ Boba Fett's ship on Gall."

"I'll get Leia." Aurora said, rising to her feet with what might be considered excessive haste and headed for the bedroom.

"When can we leave?" Luke asked, laying down the carving tool.

"The _Falcon's_ prepped and ready to go. How long will it take for you guys to get your X-wings operational?"

Luke smiled. "As long as it takes for us to get on board."

Leia and Aurora appeared in the doorway.

"Looks like we've found him, your Highness," Lando said.

A surge of hope shot through Leia. "I'll get off a coded call to the Rogues."

Aurora had already yanked her boots back on and was heading out the door. Luke hurried after her, Artoo at his heels. "We'll meet you in orbit."

The waiting was finally over.

_Page break_

In what seemed a miraculously short time, both X-Wings were locked onto the _Falcon_ and they were making the long hyperspace jump to Gall on autopilot. Leia found herself nearly yawning as she sat in the lounge of the _Falcon_ watching Chewie and Threepio play holochess. Luke sat next to her, contentedly cleaning sand and grime from Artoo's electrophoto receptors. Across from them, Aurora was seated crosslegged on the deck, her eyes closed serenely. She had said something about meditation, to which Luke had given her a wickedly humorous look. Aurora had merely made a face back at him and settled down. Such easy exchanges were becoming all too rare between the two of them these days; something that Leia had noticed, but so far refrained from commenting on.

Strange smells were emanating from the galley where Lando had vanished, promising something to eat shortly. It was surprisingly cozy and homey and Leia found herself relaxing in a way she hadn't in months.

Next to her, Luke finished scraping at something on Artoo's plating, then picked up a soft cloth and a bottle of cleanser and carefully wiped the droid's receptors, making certain to get all the dust from the crevices.

Artoo beeped gratefully.

Out of the corner of her eye, Leia caught a movement and turned to look, only to have her jaw drop in astonishment. In front of Aurora, a hydrospanner and a spare gas canister had risen into the air and were floating gracefully. Even as the princess watched, they began to twirl around each other, dipping and soaring in the air, seemingly effortlessly.

Luke had turned to watch silently, an unidentifiable look on his face.

"How – what-?" Leia couldn't quite get the words out.

Luke glanced at her. "She's just practicing." A sudden grin broke out on his face. "Want to see something really impressive? Watch this." And without warning, he suddenly lobbed the bottle of cleaning solvent straight at the unaware woman.

Leia opened her mouth to protest; he'd thrown it rather hard and with her eyes closed, Aurora couldn't see the bottle coming. It was going to hit her right in the face.

But suddenly the bottle shot upwards as if grabbed by a tractor beam and joined the other two objects in their mid-air dance.

Her eyes stayed closed, but her lips had quirked slightly. "Very funny, Skywalker."

"Concentrate." Luke said in mock warning.

"Oh, I am."

Without warning, the bottle of solvent suddenly shot straight through the air at Luke and he had to duck to avoid it.

The smile that had been teasing at the corner of her mouth appeared full blown on Aurora's face. "Maybe you should be the one concentrating."

Luke scowled at her good naturedly. "Shouldn't you be standing on your head while you do that?"

"Shouldn't you be covered in mud?"

Leia looked back and forth between the two of them, bewildered. She had no idea what they were talking about. Obviously it had something to do with their mysterious training, but it certainly sounded odd. Standing on heads, mud. What kind of Jedi training had this been?

The appearance of Lando with food put a halt to anymore antics between the two would-be Jedi. He sat the bowl-covered tray down with a flourish. "Dinner is served. Giju stew."

Luke, whose appetite was legendary among the Alliance pilots, took one look at the bowls and pulled a face. Leia didn't blame him. The stuff looked unappetizing and smelled worse.

Apparently Chewie agreed because he yowled something that was decidedly uncomplimentary.

Lando looked insulted. "Hey, pal, you don't like it, you cook next time."

Aurora, who had uncurled her legs and stood up in one smooth movement, sniffed tentatively at the food. She wasn't so impolite as to grimace, but her nose wrinkled and she took a step away. Leia heard her mutter in a low voice to Luke, "Makes Wedge's tauntaun stew look good, doesn't it?"

Clearly miffed, Lando grabbed one of the bowls and dug his spoon into. "Fine! Don't eat it, that'll just mean more for me." He shoveled a large spoonful into his mouth. "See? It tastes great, it -!" He stopped speaking and a variety of bizarre expressions crossed his face, before he swallowed with difficulty. "Oh, man. Maybe I did use a little too much Boonta-spice." He swallowed again, as if trying to get the taste out of his mouth. "Ration bars anyone?"

The laughter that followed filled the small lounge and seemed to wipe away, a little bit, the dark stain of despair that had been hanging over them since Bespin and Han's capture.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this. It is merely a way to avoid working on an eighteen-page paper.

Shortly after their arrival near Zhar and Luke and Aurora had transferred to their respective ships, they were greeted by a dozen X-Wings and a familiar voice sounded over the comm.

"Hey, Luke, Aurora! Welcome to the end of the galaxy."

"Sorry, Wedge, but you're wrong. We just _left_ the end of the galaxy." Aurora corrected dryly.

"Hey," Luke protested, "You're talking about my home planet."

"Which explains much."

Wedge's laughter sounded over the com. "Good to see you both again. It's just not the same without you. I hope you've got something interesting cooked up for us; things have been a little slow lately."

"Well, if you want to talk about bad cooking, you'll need to speak to Lando-." Luke said slyly.

"I heard that," Landos's voice came over the com.

"Hey, Calrissian, long time. I figured you'd be in jail by now."

"Not yet, Antilles, not yet."

"Follow us, Luke," Wedge said, "We've got camp set up on a little moon called Kile in the planet shadow, opposite Gall. We've fixed it up real nice, got air, gravity, water, all the comforts of home."

"Lead on," Luke replied. "We're right behind you."

"You call this 'real nice'?" Leia asked, her lip curling as she looked around the building they currently stood in. Made of the grayish cast-plast prefab material so common in Alliance buildings, it was little more than a hard-walled tent set down on the solid rock of the moon. It did little to hold in heat and was cold and dim, with a strange ozone-like smell which came from the ships.

Wedge, far from taking offense at her tone, simply smiled. "Well, you know the Rogues. All we need is a ship and a rock to land it on."

"You got that second part right." Leia commented sourly.

Aurora nudged her. "At least it's not hot and there's no sand." She whispered.

"Good point."

Wedge led them around several of the X-Wings and a few crates to a corner of the building where several tables and chairs had been set up; a holoprojector sitting on one of them. In one of the chairs a man was stretched out, seemingly asleep. He was around Han's age, and appeared to be tall, with red hair and pale skin. A sleek blaster was holstered low on one leg. As they approached, his eyes opened and he stood, making a low bow.

"Princess Leia. How delightful of you to visit us here in our humble castle, Your Highness."

She just barely refrained from rolling her eyes. Pilots.

Lando stepped forward. "This is Dash Rendar, thief, card cheat, smuggler, and an okay pilot."

The broad smile the other man was wearing grew. "What do you mean, 'okay pilot,' Calrissian? I can fly rings around you in a one-winged hopper with a plugged jet."

"And modest, too." Leai commented.

Dash made another bow. "I see that the princess has a keen eye to go with her stunning beauty."

Leia distinctly heard a snort from one of her companions.

"Bottle the serpent oil, Dash." Lando said. "Let's take care of business."

"First good idea you've had in years, Lando." The other man replied.

Lando gestured to Leia's side. "So you know who Princess Leia is, and you know Chewie. This is Luke Skywalker."

Luke stepped up and nodded to Dash. "Have we met? You look familiar?"

"You might have seen me on Hoth. I was delivering a shipment of food stores when the shield went up. I flew a snowspeeder during the battle while waiting my turn to leave."

With his usual good manners, Luke smiled. "That's right. You took down one of the Imperial walkers, I remember now. You were pretty good."

Once more that cocky smile appeared. "Pretty good? I _slept_ through most of that battle, kid. I could have stayed and knocked those walkers over all day without raising my heartbeat, if I hadn't had an appointment to pick up paying cargo elsewhere."

A voice from behind Leia spoke up sarcastically. "It's amazing you don't hurt your arm, patting yourself on the back like that, Rendar."

Dash's eyes shifted to look past the Princess and a huge grin split his face.

"Well, well, well. Aurora Kenobi, as I live and breathe."

"Dash." Her voice was even as she came level with Luke, neither welcoming nor hostile.

Dash's eyes swept up and down her figure in blatant admiration. "The years have been generous to you. You look good."

One eyebrow rose. "Thank you." She said dryly.

Luke looked back and forth between the two of them. "You know each other?"

Dash smiled widely. "Oh _yeah_." His tone lent all kinds of insinuations to the simple statement, and Luke couldn't help the scowl that crossed his face.

"We met several years ago." Aurora said repressively. "Dash did a little freelance work for the organization I was working for."

"Yep, we were an item for a while there." The pilot explained helpfully.

Luke felt an ugly twist of jealousy in his stomach. He was gratified to note that Wedge was giving the mercenary a rather unfriendly look too. The overprotectiveness of the Rogues irritated Aurora to no end, but he personally had no problem with it.

"We were _not_ an item." Aurora glared at Rendar.

"Well, we dated."

"One dinner does _not _constitute dating."

He shrugged. "Whatever you say, babe."

Aurora was in danger of cracking a tooth she was clenching her jaw so hard. "Don't call me 'babe'!"

Taking note of the white-knuckled grip Aurora had on her blaster as well as the truly evil way Luke and Wedge were eyeing Dash Rendar, Leia intervened before someone shot the man. Pompous ass or not, they needed him to locate Fett's ship. "Perhaps we can get back to business?"

Lando, looking relieved, gestured towards Wedge to turn on the holoproj.

Tension was understandably high during the presentation. While Wedge showed them images of Gall and a holographic map of the moon, Luke found himself contemplating this new development. He was rather alarmed at the degree of jealousy he was experiencing over something that had happened, by both parties' admissions, several years ago. He found himself glancing periodically over at Aurora, and was relieved to see that she still looked rather irked. Although her eyes were fixed on the holo images Wedge was displaying and she seemed to be paying attention, one finger was tapping irritably against the hilt of her lightsaber; a sure sign of aggravation. It made him feel immeasurably better. He tuned back into Wedge's words.

"…moon has some bad atmospheric conditions, big cyclonic storms that get real mean, mostly in the southern hemisphere. You wouldn't want to try to fly through one of those."

Dash laughed. "Maybe _you _wouldn't want to, Antilles, but I eat thunderstorms for breakfast."

Aurora snorted and rolled her eyes. Luke found himself inexplicably smiling.

The briefing continued, revealing the presence of two Star Destroyers in the system, which meant two full wings of TIEs. With each wing consisting of six squadrons and each squad having twelve fighters, that meant a total of a hundred and forty-four TIEs against their fourteen X-Wings. A little shy of twelve to one odds. Not bad.

He found himself snorting internally. How crazy was his life when that didn't seem like bad odds?

Wedge wrapped it up. "That's about it. What do you think, Luke?" He asked, turning to look at his Commander.

To his surprise, Luke found himself smiling as an idea shimmered into being. "Piece of cake. I know just how to do it."

He ignored the incredulous glances that Leia and Lando gave him.

_Page Break_

"_That's_ your plan?" Leia asked, laughing derisively.

Luke felt a little defensive. "What's wrong with it?"

"You, Aurora, and Rogue Squadron will attack the Imperial Enclave, keep a hundred and some-odd TIE fighters and two Star Destroyers busy while Dash leads the _Millennium Falcon_ to where Boba Fett's ship is docked? We'll just land, rescue Han, and fly away? Why, nothing is wrong with that plan. What could I possibly be thinking was wrong? It's perfect." She threw up her hands in exasperation and paced away several steps.

"Okay," Luke said judiciously. "So it's simple –."

"Simpleminded!" Leia shot back, whirling around.

He felt his jaw set. "If you have a better idea…?"

He paused, waiting to see what she would say. Leia glared at him for a few seconds, and then her shoulders slumped on a sigh.

"That's what I thought." Luke said smugly.

Aurora kicked him in the leg. His cocky expression turned to one of indignation.

After a few minutes of debate, Luke's plan was decided on and both Chewie and Lando agreed to fly the _Falcon_. There was another brief argument when Leia announced her attention to go along as gunner.

"I don't know if that's a good idea-." Lando began.

"You don't think the Imperial commander is going to send all his TIEs out to deal with a dozen X-wings, do you? He's bound to have somebody on the planet. If they start shooting at the _Falcon_, you'll need somebody to shoot back. If Chewie is in the dorsal turret, who is going to cover your belly?"

Luke and Lando exchanged dubious glances.

"Oh, for -!" Aurora huffed. "What is it with you guys? Is it that fact that she's a princess or female that makes you think that she can't handle herself? I don't see Leia or I protesting _your_ involvement in this little escapade! Last time I checked, having a penis was not a requirement for shooting a laser cannon. And if it is, I'd _love_ to see that little maneuver." She aimed a lethal glare at each of the males.

Wedge held up his hands in self-defense. "Don't look at me! I'm not saying a word."

Luke sighed resignedly. "She _is _a good shot."

"Thank you." Leia said primly.

Lando dropped his head into his hands. "Han is going to kill me."


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

There were a few hours to kill before the time they had decided on for the mission. Chewie and Lando were inside the _Falcon_, making a last-minute inspection to try to insure that the ship's notoriously erratic system didn't implode at the wrong time. Leia had disappeared into her cabin and Luke had followed Wedge over to where the rest of the Rogue's were gathered. From the amounts of raucous laughter coming from that corner of the shelter, she imagined they were exchanging bar stories.

Still feeling slightly irritated at the over protectiveness of males in general, Aurora had wandered over to her ship, ostensibly to check her guns for any damage.

She was annoyed, but not too surprised to hear a familiar voice behind her. It was just the way her life was going in general.

"I'm kind of surprised to find you here, sweetheart. You never struck me as the military type."

Aurora glanced over her shoulder. "But then you never really knew me, did you?" She dismissed him, turning back to the gauge she was running over the laser.

Dash shrugged. "Maybe not. But I sure would have liked to try."

She could practically feel his leer. "You tried, Dash." She assured him. "You failed."

He chuckled behind her. "Damn, but I've missed that mouth of yours. You could peel paint off a Star Destroyer at thirty klicks with it."

Aurora groaned and turned around. He obviously wasn't going away. "What do you want, Dash?"

His eyes ran up and down her body. "Now, _that's_ a loaded question."

She just barely resisted throwing the gauge at him.

He held up his hands in mock surrender. "Okay, okay! I just wanted to talk to you, make sure you're okay. You sure you can handle this? That's a hell of a lot of TIEs you're going up against."

"Oh, I can think I can handle it." She replied caustically. "I've handled worse."

"Yeah? Like what?"

"Like the Death Star." Her tone was sweetly venomous.

Dash's eyebrows rose. "That was you?"

"And Luke. Wedge and Han helped, but we made the shots." She smiled at him. "Think my credentials will pass?"

"Damn, too bad I couldn't have been there that day. I could have taken that thing in one shot. Saved you all a lot of time." Dash answered, his cocky smile back in place.

Aurora had had enough of his ego. _This _was why after that one dinner, she'd turned down his numerous offers. All that hot air got old real fast. "If you actually flew as well as you brag, Dash, you'd be the most amazing pilot in the galaxy."

"Babe, I _am_ the most amazing pilot in the galaxy."

She snorted. "Take a bit of advice: truly great pilots don't have to tell everyone how good they are; their flying speaks for itself."

Dash laughed. "What, like your little friend Skywalker?"

That was it. She was going to put a stop to his little pursuit right now. Aurora glanced over her shoulder to where Luke sat with the Rogues. She deliberately let a lascivious small smile curl her lips. "Exactly."

"Oh ho!" Dash said, "Looks like someone has a little crush." His mouth curled in a leer. "Or is this more than a crush?" A mock look of concern crossed his face. "Isn't he your commanding officer? I thought that was forbidden. You know, no fraternization amongst the troops."

"I believe that rule only applies to relations between enlisted beings and officers." She smiled sweetly. "Good thing we're both officers."

With that, she turned on her heel and walked away, leaving Dash standing there.

_Page break_

From where he sat with Rogue Squadron, Luke watched Dash Rendar follow Aurora to her ship. A slight frown furrowed his brow. Despite Aurora's obvious dislike of the smuggler, he really didn't care to have the guy anywhere around her.

Wedge, seated next to him, followed his gaze. "What a dick. I can't believe Aurora actually went out with him."

"What?" Wes Janson dropped into the chair across from them. "_Our_ Aurora?"

"Relax, Wes." Luke said. "She said it was several years ago."

Hobbie and Tycho joined them. "Several years ago would have made her pretty young." Tycho commented.

Hobbie scowled in Rendar's direction. "Pervert."

"Aurora said they only went out once and she didn't seem too fond of the guy."

"Does he know that?" Tycho asked, also watching the pair across the building. "Cause he seems to be trying to pick up where he left off."

Wes directed an outraged stare at Luke. "You're going to do something about this, right? You're not going to just let him pursue your girl, are you?"

Luke nearly spit out the drink he had just taken. "E-excuse me? _My_ girl?"

Now all four of them were staring at him with varying degrees of pity.

"What?" He said defensively.

Wedge sighed. "Makes you just want to slap him upside the head with a hydrospanner, doesn't it?" He commented to Tycho.

Tycho smiled slightly. "Let's be fair. He's had a rough few months."

Luke scowled. "How many times do I have to tell you idiots that Aurora and I _are just friends_!"

"Which is even more pathetic." Wes stated.

Luke growled.

Wes held up his hands. "Alright, Boss, alright. But if I were you, I wouldn't be so quick to proclaim that outloud, especially not when Rendar is around. After all, as her _friend_," Luke ignored the snide insinuation on the word, "you certainly could help her in keeping that blowhard off her back."

"Aurora can take care of herself just fine." Luke declared, crossing his arms over his chest.

"True." Wedge commented, watching the scene across the way where it appeared Aurora was giving serious contemplation to throwing some sort of tool at the man in front of her. "But it sure would piss off Rendar."

Luke tried to squash down the frission of glee that idea caused. Such emotion was hardly worthy of a Jedi. "And possibly Aurora. Do any of us really want that?"

Hobbie shuddered. "No."

"Exactly."

"Anyway," Tycho interjected. "It might not be necessary. Looks like Aurora managed to piss him off just fine on her own."

As one man, they all turned to see where Aurora was walking away from a scowling Dash Rendar, her body language conveying that she was thoroughly pleased with herself. Dash, on the other hand, didn't look happy at all.

Luke felt a warm glow in the pit of his stomach which he did his best to ignore, striving to maintain a tone of calm authority when he really wanted to jump up and do a happy dance. "See? She doesn't need our help."

Wes sighed. "But it would have been so much fun."

Luke couldn't help but agree with him.

_Page break_

Fourteen X-wings approached the dark surface of the moon Gall. In the distance, the white arrow shape of a Star Destroyer lay against the black crescent. Their sensors would have detected the incoming fighters by now, and TIE fighter crews would be scrambling to launch their ships.

Luke took a breath. Despite what he had said back on Kile, this wasn't going to be a milk run. They were vastly outnumbered, not even counting the Star Destroyers.

"Here they come." Wes announced.

"I see them, Wes." Luke replied. "Everybody stay alert!"

He flicked several switches. "Double up on the forward shields. Attack speed, targets of opportunity."

"Considering the numbers, that shouldn't be a problem." Aurora commented dryly.

"Yeeehhaaaawww!" One of the Rogues yelled.

And then the battle was on. X-wings and TIEs spun and danced against the star spattered background of space. Laser bursts of green and red split through the vacuum, gleaming like violent jewels against black velvet. Ships dodged and twisted, dove and spiraled. Sometimes they were successful; frequently they weren't and shards of debris soon littered the battle zone.

So far, the Rogues were more than holding their own. Rogue Two had taken a hit that knocked out his R2 unit and cracked his canopy, but he had patched it and been sent back to the base. The rest of them, however, were accounting for quite a few of the Imperial ships. The next wave appeared, this time it contained two TIE interceptors. The newer ships were faster and more heavily armed.

"I got these." Luke announced. Sunk deeply into the Force, he had a decided advantage over the other pilots.

The battle shifted this way and that, drifting and spiraling in order to avoid the Star Destroyer getting a lock on any of them. Then they lost Dix to a TIE and the other Star Destroyer appeared around the terminator of the moon and began to offload its fighters.

Luke swore. Things had just gotten a lot worse. He hoped Leia and the others were having better luck, because they weren't going to be able to sustain the battle much longer.

As if echoing his own thoughts, Aurora's voice came over the comm. "Luke, we aren't going to be able to keep this dance going much longer. Once that second Destroyer sets up a south pole, we'll be in range of the big guns on one or the other."

"I hear you." Luke replied. "Artoo, would they have had time to make it to the yard yet?"

The droid's whistle confirmed that they would have, but just barely.

"One more minute." Luke decided. "Then let's make a pass at the daysider Destroyer and get out of here."

"Copy, Luke." Aurora responded. "You heard the man. We'll let them play for a few more minutes and then we're taking our toys and going home."

"Yes, sir!" Someone called.

The Rogues had taken out almost twice their number and lost only one of their own. It was pretty good flying, but their luck wasn't going to last much longer. It was time to break up this little party.

"Luke…?" Aurora asked.

"Right. Rogue Squadron, this is Rogue Leader. Break off your attack, go to lightspeed – repeat, break off and jump to hyper!"

On cue, the twelve X-wings pulled away from the engagement. Most of the TIEs, obviously having been ordered to defend the moon, but not pursue, stayed back. Most of them.

_Luke!_

He heard the familiar voice in his head at nearly the same time a warning tingle of danger went up his spine.

Without hesitation, he jerked his control stick to the left, sending his ship into a sharp turn. A laser beam shot through the space where he had just been.

Over the comm., he could hear Aurora yelling. "Wes! What are you _doing_?"

"It's not my fault! Something's wrong with my R2 unit! It's taken control of my ship! My stick is dead!" Wes shouted.

Just to make the situation even more fun, one of the TIEs that was still chasing them got within range and began to fire off shots. Luke hit full thrust, the force mashing him back in his seat. "Everybody get clear!" He gritted out.

Behind him, Wes's ship matched his move and the TIE kept up its bombardment.

_Frack!_


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Her heart in her throat, Aurora watched the three ships racing away. Both the pursuing X-wing and the TIE kept firing on Luke's ship, but so far, he was managing to avoid the blasts. She could feel his intense concentration in the Force. The only reason she was still sitting here was because breaking that focus could prove deadly to him.

Then, in a display of truly virtuoso flying, Luke managed to twist and dodge so much that he led the TIE directly into the blasts from Wes's ship. It blew up spectacularly. But Luke wasn't out of the woods yet. Wes's X-wing was still firing on him. And this was the hard part; because how was Luke going to disable the fighter without killing Wes?

Wedge's voice broke into her concentration. "Aurora, some of those TIE's are headed back this way."

She glanced at her scope and swore. Uncertain as to what exactly was going on, several of the TIE pilots had apparently decided to take advantage of the situation anyway and were fast approaching the group of X-Wings.

Luke had disabled the engines of Wes' ship so that it was dead in space, but the guns were still working and Luke was dancing around furiously trying to avoid the lasers while at the same time he tried to take out the malfunctioning R2 unit.

"Should we tell Luke?" Someone asked.

"No! Don't break his concentration." She snapped. "Wedge, get everybody back to base. I'll take care of those TIE's and we'll meet you there." She was already turning to meet the oncoming Imperials as she spoke, her teeth clenched tightly. Once more she was turning her back on Luke when he was in danger. But there was nothing she could do. If she tried to help him with Wes, she might just distract him and get him killed. But at least she could take out the Imperial fighters.

It didn't take long. She'd figured since the TIE's had obviously been given orders not to pursue, that these three that were ignoring those orders were either relatively new or else wanna-be hotshots; overconfident in their own abilities. Which proved to be true.

She took one out with a long-range shot before they had even closed to combat range. He was so intent on getting to the other two X-Wings, he hadn't even bothered to try and avoid her laser fire.

The other two proved a little more difficult, but having the Force on your side severely evened the odds. She almost seemed to know which way they were going to move. A few twists and turns, a few dodges and a several blasts and the TIEs were so much space dust.

She turned back to the other ships just in time to see Luke take out the guns on Wes' fighter.

She could feel his relief through the Force as Luke commed her.

"Aurora, see if you can get a magnetic line on Wes and let's get out of here."

"Will do, Boss."

"Hey, I'm sorry, Luke, I don't know what happened." Wes said, his tone thick with worry.

"Don't worry about it. We'll sort it out later. Right now, we'd better go before the Empire decides we might be worth chasing after all."

"Oh, I suggested to them that might not be a good idea." Aurora interjected.

"Really? Cause I don't think they listened." Wes told her. "They're coming back."

"What are these guys? Idiots or just suicidal?" She muttered in disgust.

"Does it have to be either or?" Wes asked. "I sort of like both answers."

"Let's move it." Luke interrupted them, pointing his X-Wing into clear space and hitting the throttle.

_Page break_

Once they had landed, Aurora shut down her ship's engines, detached the magnetic towing cable connecting her to Wes' X-Wings, and vaulted from the cockpit. Wedge and Wes were already standing next to the damaged ship.

Wes looked so morose she slung her arm around his shoulders. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'd sure like to know what my R2 unit ate for breakfast, though. What could have gotten into it?"

"Why don't we see if we can find out?" Luke said, walking up to them. Aurora checked him out surreptitiously as he waved at the crew chief to bring over a coupler for the astromech.

He looked mostly alright. A little strain was visible around his eyes and mouth, but not much. However, his sense in the Force felt decidedly rattled; she opened her mouth to ask if he was okay, but he shot her a warning look and she subsided. Obviously he wanted to play the impervious Commander in front of everyone. Fine. She'd just be the indifferent subordinate. It was role she was getting used to.

Artoo had rolled up next to them and directed an inquiring whistle at Luke.

"I don't know, Artoo. You ever heard of anything like it before?"

Another whistle, this one negative.

They watched as the R2 unit was settled on the ground and the crew chief slapped a restraining bolt on it.

Artoo rolled forward and plugged his interface jack into the other droid. A translation screen was plugged in to the R2 unit at the same time. After a brief moment, words began to scroll across the screen.

"Uh oh." Luke said, reading.

"That's never good." Wedge replied. "What's wrong?"

"The droid wasn't malfunctioning. It was _programmed_ to shoot at me."

"An assassination attempt?" Wedge whistled. "Who? Why? _How_?"

"Well, I think who would be pretty obvious. How much are you worth now on the Imp's Most Wanted list?" Wes asked.

Luke sighed and pushed his hand through his hair. "Too much."

Aurora shook her head. "No, that doesn't make sense. Luke's alive only."

"He _was_." Wedge answered. "Maybe that's changed. It's been a while since we've seen the updated list." He eyed his commander. "You done anything lately to piss off the Empire? I mean more than usual."

"No." But Luke turned away abruptly, his prosthetic hand clenching into a fist while visions of Bespin shot through his head. He was aware of Aurora's eyes on him and was pathetically grateful when the crew chief's com chirped, signaling an incoming transmission and interrupting the conversation.

"That's Rendar coming in." She said after she'd answered.

"What about Leia and the others?" He asked.

"He didn't say." The chief replied, shrugging.

"Typical." Aurora muttered.

"Keep an eye on that R2 unit." Luke ordered the crew chief. "Don't let anyone touch it." He motioned with his head, and the others followed him into the second hangar where Dash Rendar's ship was just settling to the deck.

_Page break_

"You just left them there?" Luke yelled in disbelief. His hands clenched into fists at his side while he fought the overwhelming urge to punch Dash Rendar in the face. Wedge must have seen his struggle for control, because he put a restraining hand on Luke's shoulder.

"Take it easy, Luke."

"Hey, kid, I was paid to show them where _Slave I_ was. I showed them. My job was done. If they wanted me to do anything else, they should have contracted for it up front." Dash said smugly.

Before Luke could respond, Aurora stepped forward and slammed her fist into Dash's face, knocking him backwards.

"You selfish bastard!"

Luke leapt forward and wrapped his arms around Aurora to keep her from following up with another punch.

"How could you just leave them there alone?" The furious redhead spat from within Luke's restraining embrace.

Dash stood up carefully, wiping the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. "They paid me to guide them there and that's what I did. End of story."

"Yeah, being paid is always the end of the story for you, isn't it, Dash? Never mind if anyone gets hurt, right? Just as long as you get paid." Aurora said bitterly. She'd stopped struggling to get free and stood staring coldly at the pilot. "You'd better sincerely hope nothing happens to them."

"Or what, sweetheart? You'll shoot me? Nobody forced them to go there." He turned on his heel and walked away.

Aurora swore again, but the words were more frustrated than angry.

"He's right." Luke said quietly. "He did what he was paid for. We can't blame him if something happens."

"Oh, I can blame him." Aurora stated coldly, still glaring after the other man.

They stood silent for a moment, Luke suddenly acutely conscious that she was still standing within the circle of his arms, her body leaning against his slightly and that his hold had loosened into more of an embrace. He was also suddenly aware that Wedge and Wes were standing there grinning like idiots at the two of them.

Aurora must have realized it at just about the same time, because she suddenly coughed and stepped away from him, breaking the circle of his arms.

"Sorry." She said, avoiding his eyes. "I probably shouldn't have hit him."

"Seemed like a good idea to me." Wes said cheerfully. He was still grinning, and as Luke caught his eye, Wes lowered one eyelid in an ostentatious wink.

Luke rolled his own.

One of the sensor crew suddenly approached them in a rush. "Sirs, we've got a ship coming in! No communications, but the scopes say it's a Corellian freighter. They're about fifteen minutes out."

Luke heard Aurora's breath rush out in a sigh of relief. They were alive, or at least one of them was. He searched for that nebulous feeling he'd had on Tatooine. He could just barely feel Leia's presence in the Force and felt his shoulders relax slightly, losing a little of the tension he hadn't even been aware of carrying.

"Leia's okay. I'm not sure about the others."

Wedge and Wes were both smiling, but Aurora had an odd look on her face. Luke wasn't sure what it meant. It almost looked a little like…jealousy? Of Leia? He ignored the automatic surge of glee the thought caused. They were better off as just friends. Now maybe if he just repeated that to himself a few thousand times a day, his libido would eventually get the message. Of course, it might help if his heart did too, then he'd stop having these urges to just drag her off somewhere and resolve their relationship issues once and for all, preferably in a way that ended with the two of them locked into one of the staterooms on the _Falcon_.

Thankfully, Wedge called him back to his responsibilities before he allowed temptation to get a good grip.

"That gives us a few minutes. What say we go and see what we can dig out of that rascaled R2 unit?"

"Good idea." Luke replied, pretending that was relief he felt at not being able to confront Aurora and not the disappointment he actually knew it to be.

Fortunately, he didn't have long to dwell on that disappointment; when they reached the area where the deadly astromech was supposed to be, it was to find a pile of scorched and damaged parts instead of an intact droid.

It had been destroyed.

Luke automatically looked up, trying to find the crew chief who had been responsible for guarding the astromech.

He found her nearly immediately; pointing a blaster directly at him.

He heard Aurora yell "No!" and then the chief was firing, the blast passing just to the side of Luke. He felt the heat of it pass his arm and could smell the ionized air from the bolt even as he dove to the side, hand dropping automatically for a lightsaber that wasn't there.

Behind him, there was the familiar snap-hiss of Aurora's lightsaber igniting, followed nearly simultaneously by another blaster bolt. This one came from Wedge and it caught the chief square in the chest, knocking her backward off her feet.

As Luke rolled to his feet, Aurora was already nudging the crew chief with her boot, the blue glow from the lightsaber in her hand casting shadows across the body. "Too late. She's gone."

"Sorry," Wedge said. "I shouldn't have gone for my gun. That's why she fired."

"Not your fault." Luke replied, looking down at the body. "I guess we know who reprogrammed the droid."

"Yeah, but I want to know why." Aurora said. She turned off her weapon and reclipped it to her belt.

"Maybe we can find out." Wedge answered. "I'll see what the operations computer has on her."

"Do it." Luke told him. There was a cold feeling growing in him. This was the second time in less than an hour that someone had tried to kill him. Having experienced his fair share of space battles and gun fights, he was not unused to danger, but this felt so _personal_.

Ignoring the unspoken tension between them, Aurora wrapped her arm around his and rested her head against his shoulder, letting her presence soothe him. Luke knew he should move away, but as unsettled as he was, for just a moment, he let his head rest against hers, relishing the warmth of the contact and the unquestioning support.

A/N: I don't mean to beg, people, but I'd love if you could let me know how I'm doing with the story and where I should go with it. I have a general idea of the plot, but feedback is always appreciated. I worry that I'm getting too cheesy and clichéd.

And a big thank you to those of you who _have_ reviewed, especially **I love dance**, who has been faithfully following the story.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

A/N: A giant wookie-sized thank you to everyone who reviewed! You guys are awesome and it really made my day to read them. You inspired me so much I've been writing every day…to the detriment of my linguistics class. I guess I should beg more often….

I tried to respond individually to everyone, but if I missed anyone, I'm sorry and thank you for taking the time to comment. BrenB., you weren't signed in, so I couldn't reply back, but thank you for your review and your commiseration! Congrats on your Master's! I'm in the middle of my last semester; so the end is in sight! And I already have a adjunct position for the Fall, so life is looking good.

The _Falcon_ landed with its usual hiss of escaping gases and slight creak as the landing struts accepted the weight of the ship. After a few minutes, the ramp lowered with the familiar creaking of gears and Lando and Chewie appeared in the opening, followed by Threepio shortly. But it was another few moments before Leia appeared, looking ten years older than she had.

Aurora could empathize with the look of pain on the other woman's face as she walked slowly down the ramp, but it still didn't stop the frisson of jealousy that curled in her stomach when Luke opened his arms and Leia collapsed into them.

"What happened?" He murmured to her.

"Boba Fett got away." Leia's reply was muffled against his shirt.

His own face a mask of sorrow, Lando looked at his feet. "Yeah, and we were lucky to get away ourselves. The place was thick with TIE fighters. I'm sorry, Luke. I tried."

Next to him, the big Wookiee nodded and growled.

Aurora wrapped her arm around Chewie's waist. "Not your fault. You did the best you could."

Luke nodded at both of them, his head still bent over Leia's. "Come on. We'll figure something out."

_Page break _

Leia was hurting and terrified for Han, but she wasn't so wrapped up in her own misery that she failed to notice the strained air around the others.

Luke was working to keep his face clear, but a frown kept working its way back, and she had a feeling it didn't have anything to do with their failure to capture Fett.

Aurora was better at concealing her feelings on her face; but the very blankness of her expression told Leia that something was wrong. A little questioning had the details of the incidents with the droid and the crew chief spilling out and she was horrified to hear how close to being killed Luke had come, not once, but twice.

But it wasn't until Wedge, with Lando at his side, returned from his search of the ops computer that she learned that it was even worse.

"Well?" Aurora asked as the two men approached them. Wedge looked rather grim as he glanced from her to where Luke and Leia sat side by side on a bench made out of crates."It seems there was a transfer for ten thousand credits into the chief's account a few days ago, just after Rogue Squadron arrived here. Lando managed to access the account, using, uh, a borrowed command override code."

"And?"

"The money came from a dummy corporation." Lando explained. "I managed to backwalk it through two more dummy corporations. Wound up with something called Saber Enterprises." His expression got darker. "Last I heard, Saber was a front organization for the Empire's secret undercover anti-espionage operations."

Next to her, Luke stiffened.

"You think somebody paid the chief to rig the droid to shoot Luke?" Leia asked.

"Seems awfully coincidental to me otherwise." Lando confessed.

Leia nodded thoughtfully. "It's got Vader's gloveprints all over it."

From across the way where she was sitting on a table, Aurora was shaking her head. "No, that doesn't make any sense."

"Why not?" Leia asked, turning to look at her. Leia had thought it was rather odd when the other woman had sat down so far away from them, but now she realized that from where she was sitting, Aurora was directly between them and the rest of the hangar; anyone trying to get to them had to go past her to do it. She was protecting Luke.

"Vader wants Luke alive." Aurora explained. "He wants him to join the Empire."

"Maybe he changed his mind." Lando offered. "Luke did turn him down rather emphatically."

"I'd say jumping off a gantry definitely qualifies as emphatic." Wedge said dryly.

Luke, who had been silent until this point, raised his eyes from the tips of his boots and met Aurora's across the room. Something unspoken passed between the two, something that Leia would have dearly loved to understand.

"No." Luke said softly after a moment. "I don't think he'll give up that easily."

Lando shrugged. "There was another thing. The chief's account had a pending file of credit in it from the same dummy corporation."

"Meaning what?" Leia asked, trying to watch Luke and Aurora surreptitiously. Luke was once more staring at the floor, but Aurora was still watching him, a look of concern on her face.

"Meaning there was probably going to be another transfer of funds. My guess is that the ten thousand was just a down payment. If Luke had gotten blown up on that run, I'd also guess that a much larger amount would have wound up in the chief's account. Sure brings up a lot of questions, doesn't it?"

"Questions we don't seem to have the answers to." Leia replied.

Wedge looked defensive. "She was going to shoot Luke. Second rule of self-defense is to shoot first and ask questions later."

Lando nodded, prompting Leia to ask, "What's the first rule?"

"Be somewhere else when the shooting starts." Lando replied.

"Good rule."

_Page break _

Watching Luke pace in front of her, Leia had to admit that she had underestimated his response to her suggestion. She'd known he wouldn't like it when she'd proposed that he return to Tatooine to keep an eye out for Fett's ship, but the reasons she had given were completely reasonable and he couldn't really argue with them. He _was _the best person to go wait there; he was familiar with the terrain and he needed to finish his lightsaber and somewhere to practice his Jedi skills in peace and quiet. It was simply logical. Never mind that it wasn't entirely the truth; but then Luke had no way of knowing that. Or did he?

She considered that for a moment, then shook her head mentally. No, he couldn't know her real reasons for sending him back there. So, that wasn't the problem. In fact, now that she thought about it, the real argument had started when she informed him that Aurora was going with him. _That's_ when Luke had gotten so truculent.

"No." He said flatly.

Leia raised her eyebrows. It was rare for Luke to speak to her so shortly, but this was actually bordering on rude.

"Excuse me?"

He had the grace to flush a little, but the stony expression on his face remained set. "I said, no. I'll go back and wait, fine. Somebody has to and it might as well be me, but Aurora isn't coming with me." He kept his eyes on Leia's face, deliberately avoiding looking at Aurora. "If you're so insistent that this Alliance business of yours can't wait, then you're taking at least one of us with you for protection."

Leia's mouth dropped open. "For protection? I'm taking Lando and Chewie with me. You don't think that's protection enough?"

"They're not Jedi."

"Neither are we." Aurora interjected quietly.

Luke flushed slightly. "We're the closest thing in the galaxy to it."

"We're also the most hunted things in the galaxy right now. Especially you." The redhead shot back.

He turned on her angrily. "Oh, I get it. So this is for _my_ protection? You're supposed to be babysitting me?" Angry blue eyes shot back to Leia. "Well, thank you for your concern, but I can take care of myself."

Before Leia could respond, Aurora interrupted again. "With what? Your good looks? You don't even have a lightsaber anymore, remember?"

The look Luke was giving her could have melted durasteel and Leia thought it might be time to intervene before one of them said something they'd regret. Not that that wouldn't be fascinating; she was dying to find out what was going on with the two of them, but it would hardly be helpful right now.

"Luke, I'm not sending Aurora with you as any kind of bodyguard." Which was a flat out lie, because that was exactly what she was supposed to be; but when dealing with fragile male egos, Leia had leaned a long time ago that the truth was very frequently a bad thing. "I know you can handle yourself. But the business I'm going on is rather delicate and frankly, Aurora is a little noticeable."

"Thank you," Aurora said dryly. "I think."

Luke still looked mutinous, and that's when Aurora hit him with what, Leia had to privately concede, was brilliant, but rather cold and underhanded.

"Think about someone else for a moment, Skywalker, instead of your ego. My going with them could very well place Leia and the others in danger. Isn't that worth sacrificing your pride over?"

Luke looked away, his jaw clenched and fist flexing. After a moment he spoke, his voice quiet, "Yes, of course. I'll be ready to go whenever you are." And with that he turned on his heel and walked away.

A stricken silence remained behind him until he was out of sight, and then Aurora suddenly turned and slammed her fist into the castplast wall behind her. "Damn it!" She stayed facing the wall for a moment, her shoulders slumped. "Force, I hate myself sometimes."

Leia touched her shoulder tentatively. "You did it for his own good."

"I wonder how many times Vader said that very thing to himself, in the beginning." Aurora responded cryptically. She shrugged off Leia's hand. "I'd better go get my ship ready. I'm sure Luke would love any excuse right now to leave me behind."

Within seconds, Leia found herself standing alone.

"Well, that certainly went well." She said to no one.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Luke seriously considered finding a bottle of the Corellian whisky that he knew the Rogues would have with them and drowning this clawing, impotent fury in it, but he knew it was probably a bad idea. He and Aurora would be leaving shortly and flying through unfamiliar territory while plastered was high on the list of ways to get yourself killed. Besides, who knew what he was liable to say with his tongue loosened by alcohol.

He was honest enough to admit that he was far angrier with himself than with Aurora. Although, that last comment _had_ been way below the belt. Still, he knew she hadn't really meant it; she'd only said it to manipulate him into agreeing.

If he hadn't been so obstinate about her going back to Tatooine with him, she wouldn't have been forced to resort to such tactics. And he knew her well enough to know that she was miserable right now about what she'd said.

But he couldn't very well come out and tell Leia that the reason he didn't want Aurora to come with him was because he didn't trust himself alone with her in Ben's little hut.

And therein lay the problem. This stupid, up in the air, undecided, ill defined relationship between them. Before Bespin he'd have killed to be able to spend time alone with her; just the two of them, no one else around, no distractions. But that was before Bespin, when a lot of things had been different. When he didn't have all these fracking doubts continuously circling through his head.

_Damn Vader!_ He thought viciously. Damn him for destroying the one thing in the galaxy that Luke wanted more than any other, and now had to deny himself. And damn Leia for sticking him in a tiny building alone for weeks on end with temptation incarnate. But mostly, damn himself for not having the self control to just _get over her_.

_Page break_

They had maintained comm silence for most of the trip, and more than likely, as far as Luke was concerned, for the rest of it too, but Aurora simply couldn't take the guilt any longer.

She jabbed her comm button a little harder than necessary to signal Luke.

There was a long pause and she was just getting ready to hit the comm again when his voice came through.

"Yes?"

It was entirely too polite. She knew he was angry and this was just a façade, one probably designed to make her feel worse than she already did, but damn it, it was working.

"I'm sorry, all right?" She blurted. "I didn't really mean it. But you were being so bloody stubborn, and over nothing, that I had to say something to get you to agree."

There was another long pause. "This is supposed to be an apology?" His voice was as cool as hers was agitated.

"Yes, damn it!"

"Really? You might want to work on it some more."

"Son of a Sith!" Aurora swore, slamming her hand against the armrest.

"That's certainly a possibility, isn't it?" Luke's voice came back, the snide undertone clear.

"Augh! You are the most stubborn, irritating, condescending –!"

"_I _am? What do you think you are?" He shot back, finally losing his temper. "Manipulative, pushy…"

The conversation deteriorated from there into a series of insults, steadily escalating in volume until one of them got so frustrated they hit the comm button and ended the fight.

Aurora hissed out a few more choice insults that she hadn't thought of during the fight, but there wasn't much venom behind them. Most of her temper had fizzled out and she was left with a sense of frustration and a vague feeling of embarrassment at her own behavior. Not to mention a raging headache.

With a heartfelt groan, she leaned her head back against the headrest. "Why do I do these things?" She asked aloud.

But she knew why. Sexual tension. This whole stupid thing was the result of unresolved sexual tension. Their whole relationship lately was the result of the unresolved sexual tension. They couldn't go on like this. Someone was going to have to do something.

_Page Break_

Their return to Ben's home in the Jundland Wastes was anticlimactic. Neither of them was really speaking to the other by that point. Any necessary communication was curt and nearly monosyllabic. Upon entering the house, Luke immediately went to work on his lightsaber, leaving Aurora standing uncertainly in the middle of the room. Silently she watched him work for a moment, chastising herself inwardly. _A real Jedi would swallow her pride and apologize, _properly,_ this time. _But she just couldn't bring herself to do it. Part of it was pride, but another part was aware that as long as they were fighting there was no chance of them doing anything else. She was well aware of the enforced closeness made necessary by the small confines of the house and their solitude; the buffer of other peoples' presences was lightyears away. Without the barrier of their anger, lines might be crossed that they had avoided so far.

Unable to bear the tension any longer, Aurora sighed and ran one hand through her hair. "I'll flip you for the bedroom."

Luke's shoulders tensed for a moment, then relaxed. "Take it." He replied shortly, his refusal to make any concessions evident by his tone.

She made a rude gesture at his oblivious back. "Fine. Then you get it tomorrow night."

That had him turning slightly to frown at her. "That's not nec-."

"Yes, it is." She interrupted firmly. "It's fair."

Luke shrugged indifferently and turned back to his work, but inside he was wincing. He would far rather have slept on the couch, no matter how uncomfortable, than to crawl into a bed that would no doubt retain the scent of her hair and skin. _That _certainly wouldn't be conducive to sleep.

Behind him he heard Aurora mutter something vicious under her breath before she stalked into the bedroom and he couldn't help but agree.

_Page Break_

Hazy images of Bespin drifted through his head. They flashed past in no particular order. First he would be falling through the ventilation shaft, the air dragging savagely at his hair and clothing, body already tensed against the pain filled landing he knew was coming, then he would be creeping through the endless white corridors, his lightsaber gripped tightly in one sweaty hand, then he'd be fighting with Vader against that hellish background of red light and smoke in the carbonation chamber, his breath rasping painfully in his lungs, the muscles in his arms throbbing as he blocked against that tremendous strength. Over and over he was pelted with various memories of Bespin. They came again and again, the sound distorted and the lighting warped. He had no defense against them. Then he was once again hanging off that weather vane under the city; his body aching, his wrist a screaming, burning pain, his mind even more damaged by Vader's admission. He felt himself draw upon the Force as much as he was able, reaching out to the one being in the Universe who could help him; desperately seeking the comfort that only she could offer him.

"Aurora. Aurora, hear me."

He waited, his head pounding and his arm straining to hold himself up one handed. An eternity passed while the wind tugged at him and the thin metal that he sat on creaked ominously. Nothing happened. He tried again to reach her, stretching out with the Force as far he could. She couldn't be that far away yet.

Nothing – wait, there was something! But it didn't feel like Aurora. It was cold and harsh and dark…Vader. Vader was coming for him.

"Aurora, please!" Desperation poured off him in waves.

Still nothing. Under him the metal vane creaked again and that pervading darkness was getting closer. Now Luke could hear the sound of huge engines approaching. The wind picked up around him, propelled forward by the might of the Super Star Destroyer that was now approaching. He could see it silhouetted against the background of stars as Bespin's sun sank behind the horizon.

"Aurora!"

But there was nothing but the darkness that was Vader and Luke finally realized that she wasn't coming. She had left him. With despair, he knew there was only one thing to do; it was a choice he had already made once, and with one final whisper of her name, he let go of the vane he was clinging to and let himself fall, down and down….

Luke sat up with a gasp, his heart pounding hard enough to hurt and his lungs pumping like bellows, while sweat dripped off him. Wild-eyed he stared around the dim room, at first in complete confusion, then slowly, as he realized where he was.

A dream. It had only been a dream.

"_Kriffing hell._" He whispered raggedly, clenching his hands in his hair while he rested his head against his drawn up knees. That had been a bad one.

"Luke?"

The voice, coming as it did out of the darkness right next to him while he was still unsettled by the dream, startled him more than it should have. He let out a sound that was half yell, half curse; and struck out with his hand reflexively.

There was a brief yelp next to him and then a soft thud as something hit the floor, followed by a distinct,"Ow."

Understanding dawned seconds too late and he scrambled off the couch to drop to his knees next to her, horrified.

"Sithspit, Aurora! Are you alright?"

He saw her silhouette sit up, one hand raised to her face. "That was supposed to be my line." She quipped.

Luke ignored her lame attempt at humor as guilt flooded through him. "I'm so sorry. I –"

Aurora cut him off. "Relax. I'm fine. You just knocked me over."

His eyes were adjusting to the darkness and he could see her smiling wryly at him, but it didn't relieve the shame he was feeling.

"_Force!_ Where did I get you? In the face? Does it hurt?"

"Luke." Aurora caught the hands that were patting at her ineffectually. "Stop. I'm fine. Really."

Her words finally penetrated the panic and guilt he was feeling and he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. "You're really okay?"

She smiled at him. "I think I bruised my butt when I fell, but otherwise I'm fine."

He nodded and took another shaky breath.

Aurora watched him with concern. "What brought that on? I mean, you've knocked me down harder than that when we were sparring and never seemed to give it a thought. Why now?"

"I don't know." He settled back cross-legged next to her. "I had a dream and, well. I guess it shook me up a little."

"About Vader?"

He felt himself tense reflexively, but forced himself to ignore it. "Yeah, kind of. Mostly it was about Bespin and it was all mixed up."

His voice was casually dismissive, but she was still watching him carefully, as if she didn't believe him. Under normal circumstances, he probably would have left it there, but sitting there in the quiet and the darkness with her, he suddenly felt compelled to keep going; to let out some of the fear and pain he had been holding in for so long; to try to maybe release a little of the intense loneliness that seemed to be engulfing his life.

"You didn't come." He suddenly blurted out.

He heard her voice catch slightly, but she didn't say anything and he continued, carefully not looking at her, but staring into the darkness of the living room. "In the dream. I was hanging there from that weathervane, and I hurt so bad everywhere, especially my hand, but worse, I couldn't stop thinking about Vader and what he'd said. I could feel him coming for me, and I called you. Over and over, I kept calling you. But you never came. And so I just…let go." He finished in nearly a whisper.

Aurora's hand came up to grip his. She'd grabbed his artificial right hand and he wondered if it had been deliberate; if she'd noticed the way he'd been avoiding touching anyone with it. He knew it was stupid; it felt no different to the touch than his natural hand, but he couldn't seem to help it. He was morbidly conscious of it. He sat there now, watching the way her fingers twined around his, looking so pale against his much tanner skin.

"I could go into a long lecture on what probably inspired the dream, Luke, starting with your frustration at being stuck back here on Tatooine, post-traumatic stress from losing your hand, your fears that Vader was telling the truth, being mad at me, and numerous other things, but you already know this. It doesn't matter and I'm not going to waste my time." She squeezed his hand. "What I will say is that I will always, always do my best to come when you need me. No matter what."

Luke felt a small part of that dark shadow that had been slowly enveloping him push back a little. He still had huge issues to deal with, the foremost being Vader's revelation, but he wasn't completely alone. Somewhere in him he'd always known that, but in all the struggles lately, he'd somehow forgotten it. Hearing Aurora say it now sent tendrils of warmth stretching through the dark, cold places of his soul. He squeezed her hand gently back, and for a moment they sat there in companionable silence.

"I'm not mad at you." He said finally. "I never really was."

"You should have been." She replied. "I was plenty mad at myself."

He shrugged. "I knew why you said it. Mind you, it _was _pretty low." A small smile tugged at his mouth.

"I know. I meant it to be. It seemed to be the only way to get your attention. You were being so stubborn!"

His smile widened. "Didn't work much on that apology, did you?"

Even in the darkness, he could tell she was blushing. "Right. Sorry. I do want to point something out to you about that dream though." She was still holding his hand and began absently playing with his fingers, stroking them lightly and running her fingertips across the skin.

And artificial hand or not, Luke was beginning to find it hard to concentrate on the conversation. "What?" He asked, doing his best to ignore the electric sensation she was sending through his system.

"Even in a dream, when faced with a choice between going over to the darkside and death, you chose death rather than compromise your beliefs. You should consider that."

And he probably would, later, when he could think again and all the blood in his brain climbed back above his waist. Sitting here in the darkness with her was becoming a little intimate for his liking and he was all too aware of the blankets tumbled on the couch behind him.

He took a deep breath and stood up. "Come on. It's late and we both need our sleep. Back to bed."

Aurora used her grip on his hand to pull herself to her feet. "Yes, sir, Commander."

Luke watched her cross the shadowy room towards the bedroom. "You're sure you're all right?" He couldn't resist asking one last time.

He could just see her smile through the dark. "Yes. Why? Want to check for yourself?" And one hand drifted down to pat the area in question suggestively.

Luke flushed. "_No!_ Good night." He said firmly.

"Good night, Luke." He could hear the laughter clearly in her voice as she shut the door behind her.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Luke took a deep breath of the cooling desert air. The suns had set and the stars were appearing in the great bowl of sky above him, but he had no eyes for them. All his focus was centered on the smooth silver cylinder he held in his hand. Already it felt familiar to his hand, each notch and indentation were a part of him, as he'd spent what felt like months building the new lightsaber. He'd followed the instructions exactly, checking and rechecking the diagrams and schematics. He _knew_ he'd done it correctly, and yet nerves were still jumping, making his hands sweat.

What if he had screwed up? What kind of Jedi couldn't even build a lightsaber?

A questioning whistle came from behind him, causing him to turn.

Artoo and Aurora stood in the doorway of the house, watching him.

"Go back inside." Luke told them.

Aurora raised one eyebrow, smirking. "Afraid you're going to blow yourself up?'

"A little." Luke admitted.

Aurora's face softened. "You won't."

"Let's hope not." Luke said, a shaky smile appearing. "Still, just in case, I'd be happier if you two would go back in the house. After all, if something happens, someone has to tell Leia."

"Not funny." But Aurora turned on her heel and disappeared into the dimness of the house. Artoo gave his opinion of the situation by blowing a raspberry before following Aurora.

Luke waited a moment, just to be certain they were really gone, then taking a deep breath, he pressed the control button.

With the familiar snap-hiss a brilliant green blade appeared; the accompanying hum loud in the stillness of the evening.

Luke's breath escaped in a whoosh of relief and he felt his shoulders sag. It worked! He'd done it and proven to himself that he wasn't a complete failure as a Jedi. And just as importantly, he hadn't even blown himself up in the process.

A broad grin spreading across his face, he twisted his wrist, guiding the lightsaber through a series of infinity patterns and getting a feel for it. It had a good balance to it, maybe even better than his old one, and the hilt felt better in his hand, more comfortable.

He assumed a defensive stance and moved through several patterns, then switched to attack, slicing completely through a nearby spire of rock. The lightsaber went through cleanly, no hesitation or snagging, and the cut left behind was smooth, exactly as it should be.

Feeling giddy and just a little cocky, Luke swept into a series of attack patterns, adding a few probably unnecessary leaps and flips.

The sound of applause had him jerking to a halt in surprise. So focused on the lightsaber had he been that he hadn't even realized Aurora had come back out to watch him.

"Guess you didn't blow yourself up after all."

"No." Luke said, feeling a little embarrassed at the way he had been showing off with the lightsaber. "It works fine." He added lamely.

Aurora nodded, the ends of her mouth curling up slightly. "So, Skywalker," she said, bringing her hand out from behind her back to reveal the hilt of a lightsaber gripped in it. She spun it around across her palm in imitation of a gunslinger, before raising it in front of her. "Want to really give it a test?"

"Oh, yeah!"

Matching grins spread across their faces in a decidedly unJedi-like manner.

_Page Break_

Luke collapsed on the couch, his breath wheezing in and out of his lungs. "Water, please. I'm begging you."

Aurora, who had sprawled on the chair across from his, shoved sweaty tendrils of hair out her face and gave him a half-hearted glare. "Why do I have to get up?"  
"You're closer."

"It's your planet."

"Your father's house."

"You're the one who wants the water."

"And you don't?"

Aurora groaned, but she couldn't deny it. Her throat felt drier than the sand outside the door.

"Besides," Luke continued from where he was now prone on the couch. "The fight was your idea, so it's your fault we're in this condition."

She really couldn't argue with that. With another heartfelt groan, she dragged herself to her feet and into the kitchen area to retrieve two bottles of cold water, and then returned to the living area.

"Here." She nudged Luke's shoulder with her knee. "Sit up or I'll pour it over your head."

"That might not be a bad idea." Luke replied, his eyes still closed. Then, knowing that Aurora rarely made false threats, he sat up slowly, his overworked body protesting the movement and took the bottle from her hand. "Thanks."

The cold water felt like glory as it hit his parched throat and he drained half the bottle in one pull.

Slumping back against the cushions, he closed his eyes and took another drink, letting the water slide slowly down his throat this time. It felt unbelievably good. Without opening his eyes, he spoke to the exhausted woman now sitting next to him. "And I thought I was in good shape."

"We are." Aurora replied, her own eyes closed and her head reclined against the back of the couch. "If we were anybody else, we'd be dead."

Luke smirked. "Good point."

"Of course, I'm not entirely sure I'm not dead. I certainly feel like it, and I can imagine I probably look like it too."

Luke opened one eye to appraise his companion. There was no denying that she looked a little…bedraggled. The hair that had been confined into a tight braid was now escaping in damp tendrils here and there, framing a face that was flushed with heat and exertion and glistening with sweat. The tank and pants she wore were damp with perspiration and wrinkled, not to mention covered in sand from the times she had fallen or rolled across the ground. And yet, somehow, it all worked on her. She looked beyond sexy. Luke felt his gut clench as desire swept through him in a hot wave and his mouth went dry for an entirely different reason than overexertion.

Ignoring his stiffening muscles, he jumped to his feet abruptly.

"Where are you going?" Aurora asked in surprise, startled by his sudden movement.

"Shower." He muttered. "I need a shower." _A cold one._

"Yeah," She nodded. "We both do."

The images that innocent statement conjured up in his overheated brain were too much, and Luke fled the room, mumbling incoherently about control.

_Page Break_

That day seemed to set the pattern for the next few. They would rise early before the suns were fully up and, in the few cool hours before the day began to heat up, they would spar outside as the landscape around them slowly grew brighter. This was generally followed by a meal and then very necessary showers. The hottest part of the day was spent inside, each of them usually involved in individual tasks, but occasionally working together to repair something within the house itself. After all his years spent on the farm, Luke was by far the better mechanic, but Aurora wasn't bad and she was good at following his instructions. When they ran low on supplies, they took a quick jaunt into Mos Eisley, Luke well-concealed under a hooded cloak, bickering amiably over who got to drive the speeder. Late afternoon found them back outside again for another shorter, if no less intense, round of battle with lightsabers; the outcome of which determined who had to prepare the evening meal.

It was a pleasurable routine and Luke would have been entirely content with it if it hadn't been for the fact that their continued proximity was playing havoc with his self-control. His days were invariably spent in Aurora's company, frequently even in physical contact, particularly during their battles which were becoming decidedly more physical as they both continued to improve with their lightsabers. But even without that, they were developing a kind of intimacy between them, even in simple day to day tasks and it was torturing Luke.

But even worse than the days, were the nights. He was now dreaming every night, but unlike the first one of Bespin, these were inevitably of Aurora, and they were very, very far from nightmares. Every night he'd wake up, soaked in sweat, tangled in his blankets and painfully aroused, with images of silky red hair and soft, clinging limbs whirling through his head. The dreams would inevitably send him fleeing outside where he would sit shivering for hours in the cold desert air in a futile attempt to banish her image from his thoughts.

The dreams were making it extremely hard for him to interact with her in a casual manner. It was disconcerting to say the least to suddenly, in the middle of a preparing a meal or fixing a condenser unit, find himself watching her hands and suddenly remember exactly what those hands had done to him in last night's dream. Aurora must have thought he was losing his mind at the way he would suddenly flush and abruptly leave. Or worse, she might know exactly what he was thinking at those times. Once or twice he thought he saw a flush rise on her cheeks when his imagination got a little carried away. After all, he had called out to her through the Force during that first nightmare. Who knew what he was projecting to her during these other, far more provocative dreams.

Luke would have been humiliated to know that he was, indeed, projecting his dreams to Aurora at night. Oh, they weren't complete, but she was getting enough to realize what exactly he was dreaming about, and he wasn't the only one waking up flushed and aching, not to mention overly sensitized to his companion's presence. They were both doing their best to ignore the steadily racketing sexual tension, but ignoring it wasn't making it go away and it was inevitable that it would all come to a head.

Thinking back on it, the Corellian whisky was probably a bad idea, but they had both been tense all day and Aurora had been desperate for something to ease the pressure inside the cabin, so she hadn't given it much thought when she'd poured them both a glass after dinner.

Luke raised one eyebrow, but didn't say anything, just raised his glass to hers and drank. They hadn't had much, two glasses each, but perhaps that had been just enough to lower any inhibitions that might have been raised later that night under normal circumstances….

A/N: I'm sorry, but I had to do it. I haven't had any good cliffhangers in this whole story.

To my anonymous reviewer of Chapter 8, wait for it….


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

A/N: I couldn't wait any longer for the next update, because I'm really anxious to get your feedback on this latest chapter.

By the way, I'm upping the rating on this, just to be careful, and you all know that means….

Luke sat up on the couch with a gasp, his heart pounding and sweat dampening the hair at his temples. As he slowly became aware of his surroundings, he collapsed back against the pillow with a groan. Another dream and this one had been particularly erotic. He passed his tongue over his lips. He swore he could actually taste her on his lips and that the smell of her clung to his skin.

Resigned to the inevitable, he rose from the couch and crossed the dark room to the kitchen area, pouring himself a glass of cold water. He'd finish it then head outside to sit in the chill of the desert night and attempt to gain some control over his own body. It was quickly becoming a routine.

However, tonight was destined to end somewhat differently.

He had no sooner taken a long swallow then he heard her voice coming out of the dark shadows of the living area.

"How long are you going to keep doing this?"

He sputtered, coughing as water went down his windpipe. "Force, make some noise when you move! You scared the hell out of me."

He swiped one hand over his bare chest, brushing away the water that he had spilled in his surprise, hoping that she couldn't see the way his hands were shaking. His body still hadn't calmed down from the effect of that dream and he really didn't want her anywhere near him right now; he didn't trust his control.

Aurora moved closer, a pale shape in the dimness of the room. "How long are you going to keep denying it?" She asked, ignoring his previous remark.

"What are you talking about?" Luke asked, subtly trying to move away from her. Unfortunately, he had been standing at the counter when she came in, and there wasn't really anywhere for him to go.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." Aurora responded. She was only feet away from him now and Luke got his first clear glimpse of her. He felt his mouth go dry. Her hair was down, spilling in loose waves around her shoulders and down her back, and she was wearing only a thin shirt that barely covered the essentials, leaving those lovely long legs bare. He couldn't have kept his eyes off them to save his life. It was with a ridiculous amount of effort that he forced himself to tune in to what she was saying.

"- night after night. Neither one of us is getting any sleep; we're both cranky and jumpy during the day and it's getting to the point where it's just driving me crazy."

"What?" Luke asked confused.

She sighed and crossed her arms over her chest in irritation. "Are you even listening to me?"

As her action had caused the top of her shirt to gape open and reveal a tantalizing glimpse of the curves below, Luke's answer was honest, if not well thought out.

"No." He replied somewhat dazedly, eyes still fixed on her cleavage.

Aurora followed his gaze and allowed a brief smirk to cross her lips.

"Sex." She said bluntly.

Luke's eyes snapped up to hers in shock. "_What?"_

"I said sex. We should have sex."

"What –no! No, we most definitely should not." Luke declared, pushing past her into the living area and trying his damndest to pretend that her words hadn't caused a bolt of pure lust to shoot through him and his mind to go places he was trying really hard not go to right now.

Aurora turned in place to follow him. "Why not?"

"Because." Luke dropped down on the couch amidst his tumbled bedclothes, desperately searching for a response that would dissuade her from what was a really, really bad idea, despite what his body thought of it. "Because we're friends and friends don't do that." He finished lamely.

Aurora raised one eyebrow. "Friends also don't generally have incredibly hot erotic dreams about one another."

Luke flushed. He'd been afraid she was picking up on those. "Those are subconscious. I don't have any control over those. But this, this would be a conscious choice; one that I do have control of."

She crossed the room to curl up next to him, the hem of her shirt riding up even higher on her legs in the process. "Do you? Have control, I mean?"

He closed his eyes and swallowed painfully. He damn well knew that she didn't have much on under that shirt and it was killing him. "Why are you doing this?" he whispered hoarsely.

She leaned towards him, one hand trailing down his arm. "Because I'm tired of this stalemate between us. You refuse to go forward, and we don't seem to be able to go back, so we just sit here; stuck in this awful, awkward state, and I'm sick of it."

Her fingers were leaving trails of fire on his skin. He'd never thought of the arm as a particularly erogenous zone, but from the way he was reacting to just her light touch, he'd apparently been wrong.

"You wanted this, before Bespin." She continued.

Luke felt the familiar surge of confused anger at the mention of Bespin. It allowed him just enough willpower to pull away from her, jerking to his feet and turning to face her.

"A lot of things changed after Bespin." He said, his voice harsh with repressed desire and that lingering anger.

Aurora remained where she was, staring up at him. "Not my feelings for you."

"Well, they should have." He replied. "Mine did."

"Did they?"

"Yes." Luke answered, lying through his teeth. "What happened on Bespin just reminded me that I need to focus on being a Jedi. I don't have time for relationships right now."

A smile was beginning to tug at the corners of Aurora's mouth; a sensual, somewhat naughty smile that was doing really bad things to Luke's control.

"I don't believe you." She rose from the couch in one smooth movement and began to walk towards him. Or perhaps stalk was the better word to describe the way she was moving, as it seemed to involve a lot more swaying of the hips then her usual smooth gait. "I think your feelings are exactly the same, if not stronger. I think, no," She corrected herself, "I _know_ you still want me. I can feel it, in the way you get all tense when I touch you. And I can see it, in the way you watch me all the time when you think I'm not looking. And I can certainly sense it; those dreams have been rather potent."

Luke watched the movements of her mouth, entranced despite himself. He fought to hang on to the anger he'd felt earlier; it seemed to be his only defense against the web of desire she was weaving around him, so effortlessly. _And why shouldn't it be effortless?_ A small voice in his head asked. _She doesn't have the same struggle you do. After all, she knows who her father is. She doesn't have to feel guilty about touching you with hands that might have been dirtied by her father's acts. She doesn't have to worry that you'll regret sleeping with the son of her father's killer in the morning._

Luke knew it was unfair, but he encouraged that seed of resentment. If he didn't, he knew he'd give in to her. He was so close to the edge now, his body begging for relief; to just sink into her and let pleasure wash away everything for a short while. But he couldn't, and the struggle was killing him.

Aurora didn't have the same problem. She'd made up her mind and she was damned if she was going to stop this time, despite whatever resistance he put up.

She reached out to rest her hand gently on his shoulder, but Luke shifted away.

"Don't." He said, a warning in his voice.

"Why not?" She asked taking a step closer to him.

"It's not -."

"A good idea." She finished for him, taking another tantalizing step. She was close enough to him now that he could feel the warmth of her body against his skin. It felt unbelievably good.

"I recall saying that to you once. Do you remember?" She continued.

Luke had to close his eyes at the swarm of emotions that rushed over him. He remembered alright; remembered just a little too well. He also remembered exactly what had happened after he whispered those words against her lips. That particular recurring memory was responsible for a lot of sleepless nights and a newfound appreciation for the cold showers that were often found onboard Alliance ships.

As if sensing his emotions, Aurora shifted even closer until the fabric of her shirt brushed against his bare chest.

Reaching for the last shreds of control he possessed, Luke opened his eyes and grabbed her arms, holding her in place.

"Stop."

But she was already too close; close enough that he could see her eyes in the dim starlight that filtered into the room.

"Make me." She whispered, the warmth of her breath ghosting over his lips.

"Don't do this." Frustrated desire made his voice hoarse, and he knew by the sudden gleam of triumph in her eyes that Aurora heard it. She smiled and let the tip of her tongue moisten her lips as if in anticipation of a treat.

At the sight, Luke bit down on a groan and his fingers tightened painfully on her arms, but she didn't protest; just smiled a little wider and pressed her body against his.

It was too much. The feel of those slender curves pressed intimately against him broke the last shreds of his control and he let go of it with a feeling of indescribable relief. His hand suddenly came up to fist in her loose hair, dragging her mouth up to his while the other locked around her waist, holding her pressed against him.

Aurora let out a purring sound that was undeniably triumphant even as her mouth met his, but he didn't care. All he cared about was the taste of her on his tongue and the feel of her under his hands. Reality was even better than the dreams had been and he was greedy for more, reveling in her response. The hand in her hair tightened, forcing her head back so that he could deepen the kiss. The hand at her waist began exploring, sliding up her back and then around to her rib cage and upwards.

Another noise sounded from the back of her throat when his hand found the swell of her breast and she pressed even closer to him, her own hands doing some exploring of their own.

He was being rougher than he would have liked, but he couldn't seem to help it; he was riding the edge between anger and arousal. Not that Aurora was objecting. Her mouth was just as avid as his and she was practically vibrating against him. He hissed out a breath as her teeth closed over the skin at the junction of his neck and shoulder, the sharp nip very nearly painful in the intensity of pleasure. But it only served to drive him further into this madness. He got a hand under each thigh and lifted, using the wall at her back to drag her up his body until her legs were wrapped around his waist. Aurora threw her head back on a gasp as his hips forced her legs apart and he settled intimately against her. Luke took advantage of the movement to run a line of open-mouthed kisses down her exposed throat. She shuddered against him and he had to take a moment, drawing in a deep breath to try to gain back some control. Unfortunately, that breath was saturated with the scent of her and did little to help his self-restraint.

She was clutching his shoulders and her nails were digging into his skin. Each little prick of pain only served to spur him on as he sought her mouth again, teeth scraping and nipping, tongues tangling.

They were both moving against each other now, and his thin sleep pants did little to conceal his hardness. Aurora was making little noises, small gasps of choked out breaths. It was driving him crazy.

He thrust against her. Hard.

She froze for a moment and her eyes went wide and blind at the sensation. A moan sounded low in her throat and she arched her back almost involuntarily, forcing their lower bodies even closer together.

Luke's control snapped again and suddenly he was spinning away from the wall, moving towards the bedroom, Aurora still wrapped around him. The sensations caused by his walking were almost too much, and they were both gasping for breath when he cleared the doorway and dropped on the bed, Aurora underneath him.

He paused for one moment, seeing her spread out beneath him, her hair stark against the white pillow.

"I'm not going to be gentle." He said, his voice rough and strained. It was the only warning he was going to give; her last chance to end this before they crossed that last line, because the Force knew he couldn't.

But Aurora only smiled up at him, her eyes dark with arousal. "Good."


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Luke knew he was in trouble long before he opened his eyes. It wasn't so much the familiar scent that filled his nose every time he breathed in, or the sound of gentle breathing next to him, or even the glorious sensation of soft, bare skin touching his own that led him to this conclusion. It was the fact that, in sleep, he had wrapped himself so tightly around her there wasn't room between them for a Datooinian air wisp to squeeze. Not a good sign.

With an internal sigh, he lifted his arm from where it was wrapped around her waist, untangled his legs from hers, and finally peeled the rest of himself away from her back, feeling an almost painful loss at the sensation of no longer touching her.

Just sex. Yeah, right.

If he couldn't even convince himself of that, how was he possibly going to convince Aurora? Especially when his body was begging him to stay right where he was and his heart seemed to be in complete agreement. Only his head seemed to see the sense in getting out of there before she woke up.

As quietly as he could, he left the room and dressed hurriedly in the living area. It was still dark out, but there was a light in the east marking where the first of the twin suns was rising. He grabbed his lightsaber and headed outside into the chilly dawn air, desperate to get away from the house and his own actions of the previous night. Unfortunately, he couldn't escape his own memories as easily, and they pursued him relentlessly, presenting him with images and sensations from the past hours. Luke tried for a while to meditate, long after both suns had risen fully, before finally conceding it just wasn't going to happen. His mind was simply too full of Aurora.

A quiet beep from the house caught his attention and he turned to see Artoo standing near the door.

"Hi, Artoo. What are you doing out here?"

The response was too fast for him to catch everything, but he thought the little droid was asking him the same thing.

"I just felt like meditating this morning. But it's not going so great." He stood up, brushing off his pants as he did so, and his hand bumped the lightsaber hanging at his hip. An idea came to him. "Want to help me with something?"

The little droid beeped excitedly.

If he couldn't meditate on his problems than maybe he could exercise the guilt away, and get himself and his emotions under control before he had to face Aurora and the consequence of their activities of the night before.

He quickly explained what he wanted Artoo to do and the astromech was quick to agree.

Luke took several deep breaths, calming himself and deliberately reached for the Force, banishing away the worries and doubts he was experiencing and instead centering himself firmly in the familiar warmth. For some reason it was easier than meditating. Maybe because sitting still didn't come naturally to him.

Suddenly, a nearly meter-long bolt of electricity flashed through the still desert air at him. Luke, barely even thinking about it, snapped the lightsaber up and over and deflected the bolt off into the sand.

"Too easy." He muttered. He'd wanted something that he had to exert himself at, in order to prevent himself from thinking too much. Unfortunately this wasn't going to work. It took several minutes for Artoo's capacitor to build up enough electrical overload for another bolt of discharged energy. That left him entirely too much time to think., and his brain went right to where he didn't want it: Aurora.

Artoo whistled at him defensively.

"I know, I know, it's not your fault you're no Darth Vader."

Staring out over the desert while he waited for the little droid, he tried to think of how he was going to face her and what he was going to say. Awkward didn't begin to describe what it was going to be like coming face to face with her this morning; not when he could still vividly recall the taste of her and the feel of her skin against his.

A distant hum to the west broke into his thoughts and made him turn around to scan the horizon. The noise was faint, but out here where the only usual sound was that of the wind, any noise was generally significant. He was searching for the source of it when a sudden loud _bzzzzt_ ripped through the air and he felt a tingling pain in his butt.

"Oww!"

Rubbing at the seat of his pants, he glared at the little droid who was making his version of a laugh.

"That's not funny!"

Artoo chirped cheerfully at him, then let out a raspberry.

"I know I didn't tell you to quit, but you saw me turn and look away!"

There was another whistle, this one decidedly derogatory.

"Yeah, well, you just remember that next time you need a lube."

Luke shook his head, but he was more irritated with himself than Artoo. His concentration was shot to hell this morning, and he knew exactly why. He could only imagine what Master Yoda would have said if he'd seen that display of ineptitude. Then again, Master Yoda would have already had his head, and possibly other parts, over what had happened last night.

Disgusted with the circle his thoughts were running in, Luke once more turned back to the west, trying to locate the source of the droning noise which was getting steadily louder. There was now a visible dust trail heading towards them, and he frowned. He couldn't imagine any reason for anyone to be coming out here other than to see them.

His previous concerns taking a backseat to this current dilemma, he turned towards the house, intending to wake Aurora up, but she was already coming out the door fully dressed, lightsaber in hand.

"What's going on?"

He couldn't completely control his reaction to the sight of her, but he fought it down and was pleased to find his voice came out calm when he spoke. It helped that she seemed to be willing to ignore the change in their relationship too. At least for now.

"Looks like we're going to have visitors."

"Friendly?"

He shook his head. "No idea. Maybe we'd better get out of sight. Artoo, get inside and don't come out unless I tell you to."

The droid whistled an affirmative and trundled through the door.

Luke headed for a nearby dune, Aurora at his heels, and they settled down to wait.

It didn't take long. The noise was now a roar and Luke recognized the sound.

"Swoop bikes."

Aurora raised one brow in question. "You're sure it's not speeder bikes?"

"Nah. I can tell by the engine noise. Swoops make Imperial speeders look like kids' toys. I used to ride one when I was a teenager. Raced around the canyons and around Anchorhead at night. They're fun, but dangerous; not much more than huge engines with seats and controls."

"So it could be just a bunch of kids?"

"Out this far? Not likely. It's probably a swooptroop gang and I can only think of one reason why they'd be coming out here." Luke looked grim. He'd wanted a distraction from his thoughts of last night, but this wasn't exactly what he'd meant.

"Us." Aurora said, equally grim.

Luke didn't bother to answer. The engine noise intensified to a painful degree and suddenly the swoops burst into the area. There were about a dozen of them, their riders wearing a mismatched set of flight suits, but with the same insignia patch on their shoulders and all armed with blasters.

He didn't have time to wonder about their intentions, because they had no sooner spotted them hiding behind the bluff, then one lifted his blaster and fired off a shot. It hit the sand next to Luke, turning it into muddy glass.

Not kidnappers then.

He heard one of them shout something about blowing him to Bespin, but he was already moving, his lightsaber flaring to life in his hand, even as the blue glow next to him alerted him that Aurora had done the same. The dune wasn't providing them much cover and without speaking, they both jumped to their feet and headed for a group of rocks near the house. It should keep most of the fire off them, provided they could reach it.

Fortunately, the swoopers weren't that great of shots, and one or the other of them were able to deflect the shots that came near.

The roaring of the engines and the sound of the blasters was creating an unholy racket and making Luke's head ache. He greatly regretted not grabbing his blaster this morning before he came outside. A swift glance to the side showed that Aurora didn't have hers either. Their eyes met briefly in shared consternation. Bad shots or not, sooner or later one of the swoopers was going to get lucky; there were simply too many of them.

_Think, Luke, think!_

The repulsors on the swoops were raising a cloud of dust that was making it hard to see. Another blaster bolt came near and Luke jumped over it, swatting it aside with his lightsaber, desperately searching for something to use against the gang. He felt Aurora's shoulder bump his as she too knocked aside a bolt that came too close.

Behind them, a crash shook the ground as two of the swoopers, trying to cut them off, crashed into each other instead. One hit the pile of rocks they had been heading for, while the other bike dropped to the ground.

That was two down then, but another ten were still flying and shooting.

Aurora suddenly yanked at his arm, pulling him aside as yet another swooper came screaming directly at him, swinging – Luke's eyes widened, a giant axe for Force's sake!

He tumbled aside only to spot another swoop even closer heading right for him. An idea came to him suddenly.

He swung his lightsaber at the bike in a feint, and when the driver ducked aside, Luke brought his foot up in a hard kick that knocked the driver right out of the seat. He grabbed Aurora's wrist and pulled her after him as he quickly jumped onto the idling bike. Her weight had barely settled behind him before he cranked the throttle hard, and planting one foot, swung the bike into a hard 180, throwing up a wall of sand at the same time.

"Hang on!" He shouted over his shoulder to Aurora and then opened the throttle up all the way.

He thought he heard her let out a whoop, but the sound was swallowed by the roar of the bike's engine. He could feel his face splitting into an undignified grin. He'd forgotten how much damn fun these things were!

For once hoping Aurora could read his mind, he pointed the swoop right at the biker with the axe. Apparently she could, because he saw her blade come up in front of him and the biker was suddenly axe-less. Another rider lost his right thruster control line to a backhanded blue slash, which sent the bike spinning out of control and into the path of one of the other riders. There was a horrific crunch and then the bikes were on the ground, their riders lying there moaning.

But the surprise of their attack was wearing off and the swoopers were starting to coordinate, directed by the hand signals of the leader.

Time to leave the party.

He swung the swoop around and opened the throttle again, taking off in a blast of heated sand.

If he could get enough of a lead, he could reach Beggar's Canyon and they'd never be able to catch him there. He knew it too well.

Grabbing a spare set of goggles off the handle bars he strapped them on, calling over his shoulder to Aurora, "Keep your head down.! At this speed, a bug could put out your eye."

She responded by tightening her grip on his waist and ducking her head down against his back.

He couldn't deny that it felt unbelievably good and he had a sudden image of what Fixer and Cammie would say if he roared into Anchorhead on the swoop with Aurora seated behind him. He grinned to himself at the thought. Good thing she hadn't been around when he was a teen or he never would have gotten any work done on the farm.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

A/N: Sorry about the delay in updating…and I was doing so well too. But I finally finished my Master's and am now teaching four college classes, so I've been a little busy with syllabi and grading papers and planning lessons, etc. It's hard work, dang it. Not to mention all the workshops and conferences and luncheons I have to attend.

Hopefully once the school year gets a little more underway, I'll have more free time and can get this baby finished. And then move on to Jedi….

With the throttle opened up all the way, it didn't take long before they reached the edge of Beggar's Canyon. Luke paused on the rim, looking down for a moment, just to get his bearings.

"We're going in there?" Aurora asked over his shoulder, raising her voice above the noise of the engine.

"Yep. Beggar's Canyon."

Aurora looked past him at the turning, twisting canyons cut into the yellow sandstone. There must have been a lot of water on Tatooine at one point to carve this elaborate maze. She'd heard enough stories from Luke about his flying adventures here to be too worried, but it had been a few years since he was last here.

"Can you still do it?'

Luke turned his head to grin at her. "Like shooting womp rats!"

His infectious grin had an answering one pulling at her lips, and if it also caused her heart to flip a little, then that was something that was just going to have to be dealt with later. "Okay, Commander. You do the flying, I'll handle the bladework."

She ducked back down behind him and Luke hit the retros, sending them over the edge and into the towering canyon walls. He risked one swift glance behind him at the oncoming swoop gang and smiled savagely.

_Welcome to my territory._

The first stretch was called the Main Avenue and ran nearly straight before pretty much dead-ending in a right turn they called Dead Man's Turn, which was pretty apt. If you didn't gauge your speed correctly, you'd end up a dark smear on the canyon wall.

Luke, with the ease of familiarity, managed the turn with no trouble. The swooper behind him wasn't so lucky; he didn't slow enough and the fireball that occurred when he hit the wall was spectacular.

There wasn't time to turn and see if the others made it through. The next stretch was a sort of elongated zigzag which narrowed down in the middle. It was necessary to keep directly in the center or you'd get scraped off on the walls.

Aurora had her head turned, watching behind them for the rest of the swoop gang to appear. They could always get high enough to watch them from above, but then they would be too high to catch up with Luke and Aurora. And there were a number of overhangs that they could simply hang out under and never be seen.

Aurora thumped his shoulder. That meant the gang had appeared. Some of them must be pretty good to have caught up this fast. Pretty good or pretty stupid.

Luke smiled maliciously. One way to find out.

_Time to thread the Needle._

The rock formation that locals called the Eye of the Needle was a tall narrow spire with a jagged slot through the center, lined with equally jagged teeth-like rocks. It took serious concentration and not insignificant skill to go through it at any kind of speed.

Luke gunned the turbojets and took off.

They made it through, although a sharp tug at his shoulder let Luke know he'd been a little closer than he would have liked; one of the rock's had been close enough to tear his shirt.

The rider directly behind them tried to hit it at the same speed, but wasn't good enough.

An echoing boom and a wave of heat swept over them as they continued down the passage.

That made five down, seven to go. It was going to get a little chancier from here on out. Compared to the Needle, the rest of the run was relatively easy. If the swooper gang made it through, they might be able to catch up to them.

Aurora must have had the same thought because he felt her let go of his waist with one hand and saw her lightsaber come up on his right.

At that moment, there was a shout from behind them.

"He's got help! We ain't gonna win this one, Spiker! Let's burn!"

Confused, Luke turned to look.

Above and behind them, there was another swoop falling silently towards the biker gang. Its engines were off and its rider, shielded behind a full helmet, was shooting a blaster continuously at the swoopers. He wasn't hitting anything, but he was certainly distracting them. Just in time, he hit the repulsors and the swoop hovered to a stop, only a handspan above the ground.

Luke's jaw dropped at the performance, but he heard Aurora mutter something about showing off.

The swoopers obviously agreed with Luke, because they took off as one man, scattering in a wave of displaced sand and grit.

The newcomer guided his swoop over to where Luke and Aurora sat on the idling swoop, casually pulling off his helmet to reveal a familiar face.

"Rendar!" Luke said, amazed. "What are you doing here?"

Dash shrugged. "Saving your butt from swoop scum, it looks like."

Luke felt a frisson of irritation skitter along his spine, but he ignored it. "You know what I mean. _Why_ are you here?"

"Well, here's the thing, Leia – she's a hot package, that one – Leia kinda wanted me to keep an eye on you until she gets back."

The irritation burst into full-blown anger. "She _what_?"

"Ease up, you'll blow a fuse. No big deal."

Luke turned the full force of his glare on the woman seated behind him. "Did you know about this?"

Aurora looked irritated, but he had a feeling it wasn't directed at him. "No. Leia didn't tell me she was sending Rendar. If she had, I would have told her not to bother." She cast a disparaging glance at the other man.

"Guess she didn't think you were up for the job, babe." Rendar said snidely.

Aurora's hand clenched at Luke's waist, but before she could unleash her temper on Dash, Luke was speaking.

"Listen, pal, I don't need a baby-sitter!"

"Oh, yeah, you coulda taken those melloons all by yourself, right?"

"I wasn't doing so bad."

"No, you're right, you weren't. But you _were _gonna lose."

Luke reined in his temper as much as he could. There was no point in getting into a pissing contest with Dash Rendar. The man would never admit to being less than the best. He personally couldn't stand the man, but he _had_ helped them out, and he was right, it would have taken extreme good luck for them to beat the rest of the swoop gang by themselves.

Swallowing his pride, he muttered a reluctant, "Thanks."

He felt Aurora's surprise behind him, but she didn't say anything, probably fully aware of the blow his pride had just taken.

Dash, on the other hand, had no such qualms. "Excuse me, I didn't hear what you said."

"Don't push it, Dash." Aurora snarled.

The older man grinned at her.

Luke quickly changed the subject before his passenger leaped off the swoop and turned Dash into another casualty of Beggar's Canyon.

"Any idea who these guys were?"

"Jabba's men. I recognized their patches."

Luke glanced at one of the bodies behind him. He knew that shoulder patch had looked familiar. Jabba the Hutt's boys. They must have been hired out.

"I was in Mos Eisley, kinda….hanging around, when I heard them talking. They had orders to kill you."

"I think we figured that out, thanks." Aurora said dryly.

Dash looked at Luke. "Vader is no longer your number one admirer."

Luke turned away at the mention of the name. "He never was."

"If it's him behind it." Aurora interjected. She still had her doubts about that, despite what everyone else seemed to believe.

Luke was looking far too pensive for her liking, and she nudged his shoulder. "Come on, let's get back home and out of this heat."

He shook himself and reached for the ignition. "Right."

"Hang on." Aurora caught his arm. "Who says you get to have all the fun? I want to drive back."

Luke turned his head to find her grinning at him. "Have you ever driven one of these?"

"Nope, but I learn fast."

"Hey, babe, if you want to learn how to _ride_, I can show you." Dash called.

Aurora gave him a withering glance, but otherwise ignored the insinuation. "I'm sure. But I want to learn how to do it _right_."

Luke couldn't help the triumphant grin he tossed at the other man, and he climbed off the swoop, allowing Aurora to scoot forward on the seat, then swung his leg over to sit behind her. If Dash hadn't been sitting there glaring at him, he probably wouldn't have snuggled up _quite_ so close behind her, but having to thank Rendar for saving them still stuck in his craw and he couldn't resist needling the man.

"Okay, here's the throttle. This is the clutch and the retros…"

Aurora was right; she did learn fast and it was only a few minutes before they were zooming off, Luke clutching tightly to her waist and trying not to enjoy too much the feel of her sitting tightly between his thighs.

Dash kept pace with them, occasionally calling disparaging remarks about her flying towards them, but Aurora ignored him.

Luke could feel her thrill at the speed and power of the swoop and when they cleared the last of the canyons, and she gave him a wicked glance over her shoulder, he tightened his grip, knowing what she was going to do.

Dash was left in their dust as she suddenly opened the throttle fully and hit the turbos, Luke's laughing whoop floating back behind them.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

"So, where _is_ Leia?" Luke asked, once they were back at Ben's. Aurora had disappeared into the 'fresher to wash off the dirt and sand she had acquired from their wild ride leaving him alone with Dash.

Dash looked over at him from where he was surveying the living area. His eye fell on the tumbled bed clothes lying on the couch that Luke had neglected to put away and he raised a brow, but didn't say anything.

"Gone to Rodia to connect up with Black Sun." He responded.

Luke nearly dropped the contained of cold water he had just taken from the cooling unit. "Black Sun! Is she out of her mind?"

"Oh, you're an expert on them, are you?" Dash asked with a smirk.

"No, but I talked to Han and Aurora a lot while we were cooped up on Hoth during the cold, stormy nights. Han had dealings with them. He said they were more dangerous than the Empire."

"Cooped up with Aurora during cold, stormy nights and you talked about Black Sun?" Dash shook his head. "No wonder Leia thinks you need looking after."

Luke rolled his eyes and ignored the obvious jibe. "Why would Leia want to contact Black Sun?"

"Got me. Maybe they might know who wants you dead. The princess is fond of you, though I can't see why." He held out his hand for the container of water and Luke absently handed it to him, still thinking about Black Sun. The idea of Leia in contact with the criminal organization really didn't sit well with him; especially if she was doing it because of him. He thought back to that conversation on Gall. At the time, he'd been too distracted with the idea of being all alone with Aurora to pay much attention to what was going on, but he rather thought Leia had been concealing something. And so had…

He turned and thumped on the 'fresher door. "Aurora!"

The door opened abruptly and she stuck her head out. "What?" she demanded, obviously irritated.

Well, that was too bad, because so was he. "Did you know Leia was meeting with Black Sun?"

Her face went blank and she stepped all the way out of the 'fresher. She'd obviously been in the middle of washing up as she was only wearing a tank top, but for once Luke refused to let himself be distracted by his libido and ignored the revealing shirt. That Dash wasn't ignoring it, barely even registered it; he was too focused on watching her face for a clue to her thoughts.

"I didn't _know_ it, no." She said carefully.

Luke frowned. "Did you have good reason to suspect it?"

Aurora's lips tightened, but she refused to flat out lie to him. "Yes."

"And you just let her go?" His voice rose in outrage.

She stepped forward and jabbed him in the chest with her finger. "Don't yell at me, Skywalker! Leia is not my responsibility. She's a big girl and she does just fine on her own. She's been taking care of herself long before she ever met any of us."

Luke snorted. "Oh yeah, real well. Like getting captured by Vader and having to be rescued from the Death Star."

"I don't recall exactly covering ourselves with glory during that rescue. In fact, the only thing I recall covering ourselves with was garbage from the trash compactor." She mused in mock contemplation.

"And whose idea was that?" Luke shot back.

"Leia's." Aurora acknowledged immediately. "Which just goes to prove my point that she can handle herself."

Luke scowled at the way she had backed him neatly into a corner.

"Look, kids, I hate to break up this tender moment you got going here, but what's the drill?"

Both Luke and Aurora turned on Dash in irritation. "What?"

"We gonna sit around here and wait for them to come back? Or you maybe want to go ask the Hutt why he sent that comedy troupe out to zap you?"

Luke attempted to rein in his temper. "Jabba's got no reason to be after me."

"Unless somebody put him up to it. That's why I'm here, remember?" Dash pushed aside the disordered blankets and dropped down on the couch, seemingly dismissing the subject. "Since it's nice and quiet, I could teach you how to fly those swoops right."

Luke's temper flared immediately. "Listen, they'd have _never_ caught me in Beggar's Canyon –"

He was so incensed he didn't even hear Artoo's frantic whistling, but he did notice Aurora clapping her hand over his mouth, effectively shutting him up. He glared at her over the top of her hand.

"Artoo says there's something outside."

"What is it?" Dash asked, rising to his feet.

"He doesn't know."

Luke pulled her hand away from his mouth. "We'd better go see."

Checking individual weapons, they moved to the door and stepped outside. Artoo chirped something, and in response Luke and Aurora looked up into the sky where they see fire from a breaking rocket far overhead.

"Looks like a message droid." Luke said.

Artoo whistled an affirmation.

They all relaxed somewhat. Message droids were a pretty rare sight since not many people used them. They were rather expensive, and pretty much a one-shot deal.

"It's moving pretty fast." Luke commented. "Hope they shockproofed it."

"Who knows you're here, kid?" Dash asked.

Luke shrugged. "Leia, Lando, Chewie, Threepio."

"And Jabba. Thought I don't think he'd spend the money for a droid when he could make a local com, he wanted to talk to you. Not to mention kill you."

"Maybe it's for you." Luke suggested.

"Doubt it. I don't leave forwarding addresses."

The little ship was getting closer, still moving pretty fast. As they watched, it fired retro rockets and began to slow, although not enough.

"Maybe it's for Ben." Aurora said. "From someone who doesn't know he's…gone."

Luke glanced at her swiftly to gauge her emotions, but she seemed calm enough.

"We'll know soon enough. That thing's coming in fast." Dash responded. Within seconds, the small ship hit the ground hard enough to raise a splash of sand and make an audible boom. "Let's go."

Luke almost snapped back at him, but managed to bite it back. His temper had been awfully close to the surface today. He was pretty certain that it was because of the events of last night. Things had been happening so fast that he hadn't had a chance to feel much awkwardness around Aurora, but he had a feeling that would change as soon as they had a quiet moment.

_Page Break_

Despite its hard landing, the message droid seemed to be mostly intact. The rounded box now hovered a meter or so above the floor in the living area. However, something must have rattled loose inside it, because for the fifth time it repeated that it had a message for Princess Leia Organa.

Luke rubbed his temple in frustration. "How many times do I have to tell you she isn't here?"

From where she sat on the couch with her chin resting on her knees, Aurora intervened. "Artoo, can you talk to this thing?"

The little droid chirped back at her, then moved over to the messenger droid and began whistling and chirping rapidly at it, lights flashing from his holoprojector.

Apparently it made some difference, because the box paused and then came back with a new message. "I am empowered to deliver the message to an authorized representative of Princess Leia Organa, in her absence."

Luke and Aurora exchanged glances. She shrugged.

"Tell me. I'm her, uh, authorized representative."

"Password?"

"Uh, Luke Skywalker." Luke tried.

"That password is incorrect." The droid replied.

"Um, Han Solo?"

"That password is incorrect."

Dash laughed snidely. "We could be here a real long time while you rattle off all the names you know, Luke."  
"Shut up, will you? I'm thinking."

"Ah, well, wouldn't want to interfere with _that_, would we?" Dash responded.

Luke turned on him angrily, but Aurora interrupted him.

"Alderaan."

"Password correct."

There was a whirring sound and then a plate on the droid's front slid back to reveal a holoprojector. There was a slight pause then the holoproj blinked on.

A fuzzy image of a somewhat short Bothan with long hair appeared. He was dressed simply, but wore a military style blaster at his hip as if he knew how to use it.

"Greetings, Princess Leia. Koth Melan here, speaking to you from my homeworld of Bothawui. Our spy network has uncovered information vital to the Alliance, and the nature of these data are of such significance as to justify sending this messenger droid. You must come to Bothawui _immediately_. I cannot overemphasize the importance of this information, or the urgency. Time is of the essence. I will be at the Intergalactic Trade Mission for five days. The Alliance _must_ act in that time or the information may be lost."

The image flickered and went out.

"Well, well." Dash said rubbing his cheek. "Somebody is in a big hurry." He squinted up at the ceiling. "We could just make it to Bothawui before his deadline if I pushed my ship hard. Even those X-wing crates of yours might do it, though I wouldn't bet on it."

"We need to get this information to Leia." Luke replied, frowning at the spot where the holoproj had been.

"Not a chance, kid. We can't use the holonet 'cause we don't know where she is exactly. We can't just call and ask now can we? 'Excuse me, can you tell me where one of the Empire's most wanted enemies is, please?' "

"All right, I get it." Luke waved one hand to shut him up.

"Yeah, well, time we got to Rodia, found her, and _she _got back to Bothawui, it'd be a standard week at the least."

Luke got up to pace. Dash was right. Still… "I guess we'll have to go in her place, then."

"Why? The message was for her." Dash stated.

"Granted. But whatever this Koth Melan has to tell her, it's big. Somebody from the Alliance needs to know, and right now that means us." Luke explained.

"Doesn't sound too bright to me. A Bothan spymaster is just going to roll over and give it up, just like that? And his name doesn't sound right, either. 'Melan'? That's not Bothan."

Aurora spoke up for the first time since she'd given the password. "If this guy is associated with the Alliance, then he knows who Luke and I are and of our association with Leia. I don't think he'll have a problem with passing on this information to us."

Luke winced at that 'us'. This wasn't going to be pretty. "Um, Leia still needs to know about this. Which means one of us has to go to Rodia and find her."

Green eyes zeroed in on his face. " 'One of us'?"

Luke chickened out and collapsed on the couch next to her. "We can send Dash."

"No way." The other man interjected. "I'm sticking with you, kid. You're worth more to me alive than dead; I need to protect my fee. Which means wherever you go, I go, whether it's Rodia or Bothawui."

Luke and Aurora stared at each other across the width of the seat cushion. Neither one of them said a word. Wildly, Luke wondered if she was remembering last night too.

Finally, unable to take the tension anymore, he broke. "Technically, I outrank you."

"Only in Rogue Squadron." She pointed out, but she was thinking hard. Leia was attempting to make contact with Black Sun, and she really didn't want Luke anywhere near them. Which meant that perhaps the best thing would be if she went to find Leia and Luke met with Koth Melan. Besides, he _did _technically outrank her and that might mean something to the Bothan. At least he'd have Dash looking after him…for as long as Leia's money held out.

With an exasperated sigh, she threw her hands in the air. "Fine. You two go find this Bothan and I'll find Leia and the others."

Luke smiled at her in relief. "Thanks." He leaned towards her, almost as if he was going to give her a kiss, then abruptly seemed to remember and froze. And suddenly, there it was: the pink bantha in the room that they had both been trying to ignore.

Awkwardness suddenly seemed to fill the air.

Dash looked back and forth between the two of them as if they'd lost their minds.

Aurora felt her back stiffen and Luke coughed uncomfortably, easing carefully back to his original position and rubbing at the back of his neck.

"Uh, come on, Artoo. Let's go get the X-wing. We're going for a ride."

"I'll take one of the swoops into town and get my ship. Meet you in orbit." Dash replied.

Luke nodded, although inside he winced. The last thing he wanted was for Dash to leave the two of them alone right now.

Aurora rose to her feet stiffly. "I'll grab my stuff. I might as well leave at the same time."

"Hey, sweetheart," Dash called. "How 'bout a kiss before I go?"

"You can kiss my ass, Rendar." She suggested on her way to the bedroom.

Dash watched her as she disappeared through the door. "Mmmm. Sure would love to, but I think it might be the last thing I'd ever do." He glanced at Luke and raised one eyebrow. "Right, Skywalker?"

Luke wiped the scowl off his face and shrugged. "Probably."

The other man grinned contemplatively. "Might be worth it though."

"Dash," Luke said, heading for the door. "I'd love to see you try."

_Page Break_

Once out of sight of the men, Aurora collapsed back against the door, her hands over her face. Maintaining this casual air of nonchalance around Luke was killing her. Every move, every gesture he made just kept bringing back memories of their intimacy last night. Just now, when he'd leaned towards her, she'd wanted nothing more than to close the gap between them and start last night all over again, regardless of Dash's presence in the room. And being snuggled up behind him on that swoop had been sheer torture. If it hadn't been for the blaster bolts flying all around them she doubted she could have controlled herself for long. As it was, she was pretty sure that more than once her hands at his waist had dropped lower than was strictly necessary, or polite. And she was pretty sure that Luke had enjoyed the trip back to Ben's house a little more than he'd be willing to admit. She didn't think she had entirely imagined the evidence of his enjoyment pressing into her backside on the ride home.

But dwelling on all this was completely pointless. She'd known the moment she woke up in bed alone that Luke regretted what had happened and had no intention of allowing it to happen again.

Her hands dropped away from her face and she gave a half smile. Hell, she'd known last night that he'd only given in because she'd basically seduced him. Now that it had happened once, he'd be even more on his guard and resistant to her. She wasn't quite sure what had happened to change his attitude, but it definitely had something to do with Bespin, and he was bound and determined to keep her at arm's length. And Aurora wasn't entirely certain herself that that wasn't a good idea. There was a lot going on right now in their lives. Did they really have the time or the luxury to get caught up in messy relationship issues? No matter how good the sex had been. And it had been spectacular. She gave a little shiver in memory. But even spectacular sex couldn't compete against Han's life and possibly the fate of the galaxy.

She pushed away from the door and hurriedly packed, ignoring the little voice in the back of her head that was whispering sex might not be, but was love?

A few minutes later, Luke tapped lightly on the door.

"Aurora?"

"Yes?" She shouldered the small bag and opened the door.

"You ready to go?" As he asked the question, Luke's eyes went past her and landed on the bed behind her. Almost immediately his mind flashed back to exactly what had occurred in that bed last night, and a wave of heat flashed through him. Involuntarily he glanced at Aurora and he knew she was also thinking about it. Their eyes held for handful of heartbeats.

He could have sworn the temperature in the room raised at least a dozen degrees and his pants were suddenly far too tight.

Clearing his throat uncomfortably, he broke the intimacy of the gaze and stepped back. "Dash will be at his ship by now. We'd better hurry."

"Of course." She deliberately brushed against him on her way out of the room, causing Luke to close his eyes in exquisite agony for a moment. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to release the arousal with it. Yep, a nice, long trip apart was just what was needed here. He'd get away from Aurora for a while, focus on the mission and take his mind off of their relationship, and maybe then he could figure out exactly what their relationship was. Because the way things stood right now, all he could think about was getting her into bed again. Vaguely in the back of his mind, he wondered if his father had ever had this problem….It was the first time he had considered his father with anything like humor.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

_At a casino in Equator City, Rodia…_

Lando considered the cards in front of him. He was already up quite a bit, but he considered pushing the bid higher. He'd been winning pretty steadily and the other players were intimidated. It had given him plenty of room to bluff.

After all, he had nothing else to do with his time.

Avaro, the owner of the casino they were currently at and his contact, had finally told them that the representative from Black Sun would be here in a few days. Which had left them basically waiting around for another several days. Leia alternated between watching him or Chewie play various games, or staying in the suite Avaro had given them. Chewie, unwilling to leave her unguarded, went wherever she did, followed closely by Threepio, which pretty much left Lando free to do whatever he liked.

The casino they were in was pretty low-class by his standards, but there were enough games to keep him interested and he was pretty flush after several days of winning. Fortunately, the Black Sun rep should be here tomorrow, according to Avaro.

As Lando glanced up once more at the counters showing each player's current winnings, a familiar face caught his eye. He automatically controlled his start of surprise. He wasn't positive, but he was pretty sure Aurora Kenobi had just walked past his table. Raising his arms over his head as if stretching, he was able to get a clearer look at the woman now passing the table on his right.

Her hair was concealed under a soft brown cap and there was no lightsaber in sight, but that was Aurora all right. He wasn't sure if she had seen him or not, but she was clearly trying to be inconspicuous and he didn't want to draw attention to her by jumping up and following her. Instead, he kept one eye on her while he played out the current hand. Then, draining the rest of the drink resting at his elbow, he cashed out and headed in the direction of the bar, making sure to pass within eyesight of Aurora.

Sure enough, after a few minutes, she sat down at the bar a few stools away from him. Lando ostentatiously glanced over at her, then back again, a flirtatious smile appearing on his face. Smoothing one finger over his mustache he moved over to her.

"By you a drink?"

Aurora turned to look at him in surprise, one eyebrow raised. She gave him a quick, assessing look and then smiled coolly. "Alright."

He settled into the seat next to her and signaled the bartender. "A Ruanina brandy for me and for the lady?"

"A lomin ale is fine."

Once the bartender had placed their drinks in front of them, Lando gave her another practiced smile, trying to think of how he could elicit the information he wanted without revealing anything to anyone who might be listening in.

"So, are you on vacation here?" He began.

Aurora took a drink of her ale. "Sort of. I have to deliver something for my boss, but once I've done that, I'm kind of on my own for a little while. I actually hoped to meet up with some friends who are already here."

Lando nodded. Okay, that was clear enough. She was alone, but obviously Luke or someone else in the Alliance had sent her to find them and give them something, probably information.

"That sounds like fun." He said now, keeping up the pretense of the conversation.

"Yeah, provided I can find them. This was a kind of unexpected trip, so I'm not sure what hotel they're staying at. I've tried about a half a dozen different ones now with no sign of them. One of them really likes playing holochess, and I hoped I'd spot him at one of the tables, but no such luck." She took another drink and sighed. "I should probably get going. There are a few more resorts I should check out."

"That's too bad." Lando replied, sipping his drink again and then flashing another seductive smile. "But, hey, if you can't find them, I'd be more than willing to keep you company for the rest of your vacation. I'm staying here. My suite number is 1138. Look me up if you want some company."

"Thanks." Aurora replied, eyeing him as if in consideration. She finished her drink and stood up. "I just might. And thanks for the drink."

He watched her go and then finished his own drink, making sure to take his time, before casually heading up to the suite.

Leia looked up from the desk she and Threepio were sitting at when he entered the room.

"Finished cleaning out the locals already?"

Lando shook his head. "Aurora's here."

"What?" Leia stood up hurriedly. "Is Luke here too?"

Chewie yarred from the couch where he was sitting.

"I don't think so. I was trying to be subtle, so I didn't get much from her. But I did manage to give her the suite number. I imagine she'll be here shortly."

As if on cue, the door chime sounded. Chewie hurried to the door, glanced quickly out the peephole, and then opened it, admitting Aurora to the room.

"Oh, Mistress Aurora, how good to see you!" Threepio caroled.

Aurora nodded at him, but her attention was on the petite brunette standing behind the desk.

"What are you doing here?" Leia demanded the minute the door closed behind her. "Is Luke with you?"

"No," Aurora replied, glancing at the chronometer on her wrist. "Actually, he and Rendar should have already arrived on Bothawui by now."

Chewie growled a question.

"Yes, well, that actually leads back to what I'm doing here." She sat down on the couch next to Lando, and pulled the cap from her head, letting the long red braid tumble down. "A few days after Luke and I arrived on Tattooine, and shortly after Rendar arrived unexpectedly," She quirked one eyebrow at Leia, who quelled the urge to squirm uncomfortably under the gaze, but didn't say anything, allowing Aurora to continue. "A messenger droid arrived for you. We were able to guess the password and discovered that it was from a Koth Melan on Bothawui. He said he had vital information for the Alliance and needed you to meet him on Bothawui within five days."

Leia frowned. "I wonder what could be so important that Koth would risk sending a messenger droid?"

"So you do know him." Some of the tension seemed to ease out of the other woman's shoulders. "Rendar thought his named sounded odd for a Bothan, which raised some doubts, but his message sounded important enough that someone needed to go and check it out. Obviously, there wasn't enough time for us to get the message to you and then for you to turn around and head for Bothawui, so after some debate, we decided that I'd let you know what was happening while Luke and Rendar met with the Bothan." Aurora rubbed one hand over her face tiredly. "I wasn't too happy about letting Luke go off on his own, but Rendar absolutely refused to take a chance on losing his fee by letting Luke get killed, so here I am."

"How'd you find us?" Lando asked.

"Not easily. I flew to the base on Zhar first and left my X-wing there; I was pretty sure arriving on Rodia in an Alliance fighter might be a little bit of a giveaway. Then I hitched a ride on a freighter to Ando and then caught a transport to Rodia. Once here I just started hitting the casinos and hoping I'd spot you. I got lucky; it only took me five hours and three casinos."

Lando raised his brows. "How long have you been awake?"

She gave him a weary smile. "I'm not sure. I sort of lost track after the first two days. But I'm good; I caught some sleep on the transport here."

Chewie growled his opinion of that, to which Lando had to agree. He could imagine exactly how much sleep she'd managed in a public transport, which were noisy enough all on their own, but added to that the fact that she was currently ranking number two on the Empire's Most Wanted list and was probably jumping at every noise, the odds were good that sleep had been pretty sporadic.

Leia seemed oblivious to Aurora's condition however. She was currently frowning into the distance, mulling over the current situation.

"I don't like Luke being off on his own like this." She finally stated. "But we can't leave now. Black Sun's representative will be here tomorrow." She turned to look at Aurora. "Are you planning on heading to Bothawui now?"

Aurora shook her head. "No. I don't have a ship, remember? By the time I catch transpo there, who knows where Luke and Rendar will be? I also don't want to draw attention to them by trying to find them. Besides," A wicked glint suddenly appeared in her eye. "Rendar blabbed about who you're meeting here and Luke isn't exactly happy about it. I've pretty much been ordered to stay with you."

A look of insult appeared on the princess' face. "I don't need a babysitter!"

"Funny, Luke said the same thing when Rendar showed up." Aurora replied significantly.

Leia looked nonplussed for a moment.

"He's not a naïve farmboy anymore, you know." Aurora continued. She smiled slightly, "At least, not all the time."

Leia nodded. "I know, but –"

"He can handle a lot more than you give him credit for. After all, he _did_ take on Vader."

"And lost his hand for it." Leia shot back.

Aurora raised one brow. "But not his life. How many people do you know that have gone toe to toe with Vader and lived to talk about it?" She let Leia think about that for a moment. "Besides, he's not the one meeting with Black Sun, which is a really bad idea, by the way."

Leia recovered her aplomb quickly. "I suppose you're going to try to talk me out of it too?"

"No. You wouldn't listen to me anyway." The last was said in almost an undertone and, for a moment, Leia looked distinctly uncomfortable. Aurora held her gaze for a moment, then leaned back casually against the couch, her pose deliberately relaxed and insouciant, any trace of her previous fatigue suddenly gone. She smiled carelessly. "This is your show. I'm just the muscle."

Lando glanced back and forth between the two of them, but didn't speak. Something was obviously going on here. He'd been aware from time to time of a certain tension between Leia and Aurora, but had put it down to the fact that they both had strong personalities and were used to being in charge. But this seemed to be something else entirely. If he didn't know better, he'd say Aurora was deliberately challenging Leia about something and that Leia had declined to take up that challenge.

He exchanged a look with Chewie, but the big Wookiee seemed just as clueless as he was.

Leia tapped her nails irritably against the desktop, then grew even more irritated when she realized what she was doing. For some reason, Aurora had the nearly unprecedented ability to make her forget to be the consummate politician that she knew herself to be. Only Han had a greater ability to get under her skin and that was something else entirely. But when that uncanny green gaze met her own and one slender brow was raised in an unquestioning challenge, Leia had the sudden urge to throw off all of her diplomatic training and wade into verbal battle.

Only the knowledge that she had nothing but vague suspicions to go on kept her from taking up the challenge Aurora had so subtly offered. From her previous words it was clear that the other woman hadn't appreciated her hiring Dash Rendar to protect Luke, nor, apparently, was she oblivious to the fact that Leia had done it at least partially because she didn't entirely trust Aurora. And yet here Aurora was, offering to stay and protect Leia even though she disagreed with the plan. If she was on the up and up, it was quite generous. But if she wasn't…then it, well, it could be lots of things. But trying to think that way just made her head hurt and brought her perilously close to the edge of paranoia.

Frustrated, she brought up one hand to rub her temple tiredly. Sometimes she got so sick of playing all these games. Aurora was her friend once; maybe not as close as Luke, but a friend all the same. Then Bespin happened and she had all these questions now.

Because Aurora was hiding something. She knew it with every fiber of being. But whether it was something dangerous to the Alliance or had nothing to do with it all was the question. She just wished she could settle it once and for all.

For now though, she forced herself to nod civilly back at the other woman. "Good. Then if I'm in charge, that means you do as I say."

Aurora's eyebrows shot back up again, but her voice wasn't hostile when she spoke. "Of course…within reason." She added. "I'm here as your bodyguard, Leia. If I feel that what you're planning is too risky, I'll put a stop to it."

Chewie roared something and Leia didn't need to speak Shirwook to know that Chewie was agreeing with Aurora.

"If that happens, we'll discuss it." Leia replied, not committing to anything.

Chewie roared again and Aurora nodded. "Agreed, but final call is ours."

Leia took a deep breath, but managed to hold back the temper that wanted to spurt. She'd never done well with being told what to do, and for the last several years had been in a position where she rarely was. But Aurora was apparently willing to compromise with her, unlike Han who was more likely to shout and even Luke who, despite his often mild manner, had proved on more than one occasion to be more stubborn than a bantha. There were definite advantages in dealing with another woman; egos could be taken out of the equation entirely. There was also the fact that, if it came right down to it, Leia didn't think she had a chance of stopping Aurora, let alone Chewie, from doing exactly what they wanted to.

"Agreed." Leia finally said.

Chewie urrfed and patted Aurora's head with one huge paw. Aurora rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.

"Okay, so what's the plan?"

Feeling more settled, Leia sat back down behind the desk next to Threepio, who had surprisingly, kept quiet during the discussion. "Avaro contacted Black Sun and initiated a meeting. We've been waiting for the rep to show up, but Avaro said she'll be here tomorrow."

"She?" Aurora questioned.

"Apparently." Lando replied, shrugging. He too had kept quiet during the battle of wills between the two women. Leia wasn't sure if it was because he was being polite, or was just smart enough not to step into the middle of it. She was betting on the latter. Lando, for all his willingness to help and atone for his betrayal, was still highly concerned with his own precious skin.

"Did Avaro give you a name?" Aurora asked now.

"No. He just said the rep was in route and would be here in three days."

"Hmmm." At Leia's questioning look, Aurora elaborated. "I'm just trying to remember the names of any females that are reported to work for Black Sun."

"Well, regardless, we'll know in a few hours."

"True." The other woman replied, stifling a yawn behind one hand.

Leia stood. "In the meantime, we have nothing to do but wait. Why don't you get some rest? You can share a room with me." She pointed to the door on the left.

"Sounds good." Aurora too stood. "I'm going to grab a shower and then take a nap. I want to be well rested for our…visitor."

Something in her expression told Leia that she wasn't expecting the meeting to go well.

_Page Break_

The food had just arrived when Aurora appeared from the bedroom. She looked far more rested than she had previously and had changed out her wrinkle and travel-stained clothes into a plain tank and pants, her feet bare. She tossed the long-sleeved shirt she was carrying onto the back of the couch while she fastened some sort of thin belt around her waist.

Leia frowned. The belt sat just above the waistband of her pants, so it obviously wasn't meant to help hold the pants up, nor could she see any holster for a blaster on it.

"Aurora, what is that?"

The redhead looked up. "For my lightsaber. See?"

She turned around to show them the silver cylinder nestled snug against the small of her back, held there by a strap connected to the belt. "It's hard to spot it like this. My shirt or jacket covers it." She smirked slightly. "Having it dangling at my hip is somewhat of a giveaway, don't you think?"

But Leia wasn't paying attention to her words anymore. Her eyes were fastened to the bare skin visible above the edge of Aurora's tank top.

Her surprised gasp had Aurora spinning around in shock, her lightsaber appearing in her hand as if by magic. "What?" She demanded, eyes searching the room for any threats. Leia's eyes were wide. "_What _have you and Luke been doing?" She demanded.

To her surprise, Aurora's face went bright red. "What? Nothing!" She exclaimed, her voice slightly higher than usual. "Nothing at all. Why?"

Lando, sitting at the table eating, snickered and Aurora winced.

"Nothing? I wouldn't call that nothing!" Leia retorted, grabbing her shoulder and spinning her around so that she could get a look at the huge bruise that covered the back of Aurora's shoulder. It was almost the size of a dessert plate and although it had faded to a sickly yellowish-green, it had to have hurt like hell when it happened. "It looks like you got hit with a meteor."

"Oh. That." Something that looked almost like relief crossed the other woman's face, as she craned her neck to see her back. "I almost forgot about it."

"Aurora, how could you forget about this?" Leia was studying the bruise with distaste. "How did it happen?"

Aurora squirmed under Leia's hand, acutely conscious of the huge smirk Lando was wearing . "I guess I forgot to mention that we had a little excitement before I left."

"What kind of excitement?"

"A swoop gang hired to kill Luke. But don't worry," She added hastily seeing the look on Leia's face. "We handled it"

"This is handling it?"

Aurora pulled away, reaching for her discarded shirt. "You should see the other guy."

She said lightly, pointedly ignoring Lando's sudden coughing fit and sotto-voce "I bet."

She was all too aware that she had given herself away with her overreaction to Leia's question and that Lando had picked up on it Chewie too was watching her speculatively. Fortunately, Leia didn't seem to have noticed. But the entire time Leia grilled her about the swoop gang incident, she was agonizingly mindful of Lando's knowing gaze from across the table.


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas.

Aurora paced silently down the street, slightly behind Leia, Chewie and Threepio. Despite Avaro's generous offer of a room, Leia had preferred to meet the Black Sun rep at an anonymous location and had sent Lando off to secure a room at another casino. He was there now going over the final security and checking for any taps or other listening devices. He was then to remain hidden in the bedroom of the suite, while Leia met with the rep. Chewie was to stay on guard in the hall, in case any back up showed. Aurora would be in the room with Leia, acting as her aide and doing her best to appear harmless.

But that was for once they were in the room. Right now, she was projecting as much menace as she could. The area they were in wasn't exactly known for its law-abiding citizens. The casinos did a brisk business and the thieves did an even brisker one.

She let her hand rest carefully on the grip of the blaster strapped to her leg as yells projected out of the night, followed by blaster fire and then running footsteps, and wished instead that it was the hilt of her lightsaber. Without even realizing it, she had begun to show a decided preference for it over a blaster. But, for anonymity, it was hidden carefully at the small of her back, where it would hopefully go unnoticed by the rep.

They reached the casino Leia had selected; a rather small, shabby one called the Next Chance. Aurora took a deep breath of the warm, salt-laden air, before following the others into the dim interior.

None of them spoke as they took the lift up to their floor and then proceeded down the corridor, their footsteps muffled by the faded, threadbare carpet.

Lando had his blaster in hand when he opened the door to their buzz.

"Nervous?" Aurora asked quietly.

"Hell, yes." Lando replied, his eyes flicking back and forth down the hall. "Do you have any idea what Han is going to say to me about this?"

"Probably the same thing Luke is going to say to me." She told him with a grimace, stepping past him into the small suite.

The door shut behind them, leaving Chewie on guard in the hall.

"I'll be in the bedroom." Lando told Leia. "In case the rep needs to use the 'fresher."

"And because it's slightly more diginified." Aurora added.

"That too." Lando replied, flashing a white grin at her before the door closed.

"All right." Leia took a deep breath and sat down behind the desk, taking deep, calming breaths. Aurora paced silently around the room, taking it in. It wasn't much; rather standard as far as rented rooms went. There were two doors on either side of the living area, one leading to a 'fresher and the other to the bedroom where Lando was hiding. The living area held a small couch covered in a hideous floral print and two matching chairs, as well as the desk Leia sat behind, and a small battered-looking bar and cooler in the corner.

Aurora checked the small window. It was sealed and privacy shielded. No one was getting in that way unless they bombed their way in, which wasn't exactly a comforting thought.

Chewie called from the hallway. Apparently the rep from Black Sun was here. Threepio took his place at Leia's back. Aurora was never sure how it was possible, since a droid's features never changed, but he looked decidedly nervous. He was under strict orders to keep his mouth shut during the meeting unless specifically called on for information.

Leia's eyes met Aurora's and there was no trace of nerves in their brown depths. "Let her in." She said quietly, her voice calm.

Aurora nodded once, and crossed to the door, marveling at Leia's ability to project poise and confidence even in a situation where she felt anything but.

She opened the door to the hall and had to force herself to keep her surprise from showing on her face.

The Black Sun rep was not anything that she had been expecting. She was absolutely gorgeous. Long blonde hair hung down past her shoulders, covering the top of the short black cape she wore. Under it, black thinskins revealed a killer figure, and as far as Aurora could tell, no weapon.

"Please, come in."

The woman stepped past her, and Aurora felt a chill crawl up her spine. There was something…but Leia was greeting the woman and Aurora didn't want to miss anything that was said. She exchanged a careful look with Chewie and then closed the door, taking up her place off to the side of the room. The blonde woman would have to take her eyes off Leia to look at her.

Leia too was surprised at the appearance of the Black Sun rep, but she kept it from her face, instead greeting her politely and gesturing her to the chair that had been set in front of the desk. The other woman sat gracefully, her lovely face calm and relaxed. If she was feeling anything but confident about this meeting, it didn't show.

Instead, she crossed her legs elegantly and fixed cool blue eyes on Leia. "How may we serve you, Princess?"

Leia smiled back. She could appreciate the direct approach, but it didn't suit her purposes right now. She wanted to get more of a feel for the woman in front of her before she revealed her hand.

After some meaningless small talk and an offer of refreshment, Leia finally edged into the subject she had brought the rep here for. "I understand that Black Sun has a first-rate intelligence-gathering capability."

The other woman smiled coolly. "We hear things from time to time."

Leia could almost feel Aurora's eye roll. So far, the redhead had kept silent, standing unobtrusively to the side, watching the conversation between the other two women. Leia had purposely not introduced her. She didn't want Black Sun to have any idea of who Aurora was and what she was capable of.

"We are more than willing to accommodate the Alliance," Guri, as she had introduced herself, continued, sitting casually in her chair. Leia couldn't detect any trace of nerves on her at all. She looked as if she was quietly enjoying a cup of tea with friends. It was…disquieting. "We would not be unhappy if the Empire were to lose this war and the Alliance were to ascend to power."

Leia raised a brow. "The Alliance might be worse than the Empire, as far as criminal organizations are concerned."

Guri shrugged, completely unconcerned. "The truth is, Black Sun is less and less interested in illegal activities. Most of our revenue these days comes from investments in legitimate industries and strictly legal operations. There are many in our organization who would have it become completely aboveboard, nothing under the table. Such a thing is difficult under the weight of the Empire. Perhaps under the Alliance the transition might be better effected.

"And, as I mentioned, we are in sympathy with the Alliance. We have…aided you in a number of times. In fact, we have recently aided the Alliance in obtaining the plans for a supersecret Imperial constructions project, by way of the Bothan spynet."

Behind Guri, Aurora suddenly stiffened and Leia had to fight to keep her own expression mildly interested. "Really? I hadn't heard that."

"It was very recent. The news would not have had time to reach here." Guri replied calmly.

Was this construction project what Koth Melan had contacted her about? If so, then Luke was pursuing information that Black Sun had provided. Leia was suddenly even more uncomfortable around the other woman than she had been, and wanted nothing more than to cut this interview short.

She was therefore quite relieved when Guri leaned forward to set her teacup on the edge of the desk. "I regret that I must ask if it might be possible to continue this meeting later. I have pressing business on one of the local moons, and I'm afraid my launch window is coming up soon."

"Of course." Leia answered, equally cordial.

"Perhaps we can talk again in, say three or four days?"

"I will look forward to it." Leia smiled.

Guri rose, moving as gracefully as a dancer and inclined her head towards Leia in a modified military bow. She passed Aurora and for the first time, looked her in the face. For one moment, they locked eyes, and then Guri was moving past her, and out the door.

Lando and Chewie came into the room shortly after she left.

Leia grabbed a bottle of water out of the cooler, feeling drained for some reason. Something about Guri had had her tense during the entire conversation. "What do you think?"

Lando whistled softly. "Man, she's a smooth piece of work. You could stack ice cubes on her head and they wouldn't melt." He moved over to the bar, pouring himself a drink out of one of the decanters provided, but not drinking from it. "Unarmed, unless she was hiding a weapon somewhere _I_ couldn't spot."

"And I'm sure you looked very carefully." Leia said dryly.

"Of course." Lando smiled. "She's very attractive. But there's something spooky about her."

Leia nodded. She'd felt it too, but she couldn't put her finger on what exactly it was about Guri that made her skin crawl. "Threepio?"

"I was unable to place her accent." The droid replied. "Which is decidedly odd, given my extensive experience in languages. Her Basic was flawless, her inflection precise, but I am afraid I cannot tell you her planet of origin."

Chewie growled something and both Lando and Threepio nodded.

"Well, is somebody going to tell me what he said?"

"Chewbacca says the woman made him very nervous." Threepio answered.

"He didn't say 'very.' " Lando interjected. "Just plain 'nervous.' "

"Excuse me," Threepio replied, sounding offended. "I inferred the modifier from his tone. Wookiespeak allows for such shadings."

"You saying my Wookieespeak is bad?" Lando demanded.

"Don't start again, you two." Leia cut in. "Aurora, you've been quiet. What do you think of her?"

Aurora glanced over from where she had been standing looking out the window. She had a troubled expression on her face, and her arms were crossed over her chest almost defensively. "I'm not sure. Something about her bothered me, but I can't quite put my finger on it. If I had to guess…" Her voice trailed off.

"Well?" Leia demanded when she showed no sign of continuing.

"I don't think she's human." Aurora finally answered.

Lando frowned. "Really? She looked human to me."

"To me as well, Mistress Aurora." Threepio responded. "I could detect nothing in her features that would indicate the presence of any alien biology."

"I know." Aurora said, frustration coloring her voice. "I said I didn't know what it was." She rotated her neck and loosened her shoulders, trying to shake off the tension, but it didn't seem to help. With a huff of irritation, she reached out her hand and the drink Lando had poured floated across the room and into her grasp. She took a large gulp and suddenly her eyes widened and she looked at the drink in her hand with dawning realization. "Oh."

The others exchanged blank looks.

"The Force." Aurora explained. "I couldn't sense her through the Force at all."

"What does that mean?" Lando asked.

"I really don't know." She replied that troubled expression back on her face.

"Well, maybe the next time Guri comes back, we ought to prepare our reception a little better." Leia answered.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas.

"You're sure this thing is going to work?" Leia asked dubiously, watching Chewie working at the door jamb.

Chewie replied, and Threepio hastily translated. "He says that if it doesn't, it won't be because it was improperly installed."

Leia raised one eyebrow at Lando, who shrugged carelessly. "The guy who sold it to me said it was top-of-the-line. Got the latest doppraymagno scanner, full-range sensor, a self-contained power supply good for a year. It better work, it cost me enough."

Aurora snorted. "I've seen you gamble. Hardly a dent in your winnings."

"Oh, it was a dent. I hope it's worth it." Lando replied.

Chewie called from the doorway and again Threepio translated. "He says it is ready for testing."

Leia crossed over to the desk, sitting down and turning on the computer. After several seconds, the screen appeared.

"The unit is under the file 'Bioscan.' " Lando told her.

Leia nodded and opened the program. Almost instantly a hologram appeared above the desk. "Nonholographic mode. Flatscreen only." She waited until the words "scanner offline" appeared on the screen inset into the desk.

Aurora sat down in the chair Guri had previously occupied. "I can't see it from here."

"Good. Bioscan on." Leia told the computer. "Okay, gentlemen, out. Let's test this thing."

Chewie, Lando and Threepio left the room and closed the door behind them.

"Okay," Leia yelled. "Lando, you come first."

The door opened and Lando strolled in casually, pausing to spin around as if he was on a catwalk modeling the latest fashion trend. He gave them a good long moment to study his backside. "Here I am, ladies. Enjoy."

Aurora gave a low whistle of mock appreciation and Leia couldn't keep the smile off her own face at their antics as she checked the readouts. Everything seemed to be normal. Human, male, armed with a blaster and a small vibro-shiv in his pants pocket on the left side. The program also showed his heartbeat, respiration, muscle tone index, height, weight and body temperature; even a refractive index indicating how old his skin was, plus or minus a standard year. No bombs or poison gas or commactive material hidden upon his person. No hidden holograms or recording devices.

"Seems to be working on you."

"Yeah?" Lando asked smirking. "Does it show my sexual appeal?"

Aurora snorted. "We can't chance it, Lando." She told him with mock sincerity. "Levels that high might blow out the computer."

"True." He said complacently.

Leia only shook her head. "Okay, Your Sexiness. Send in Chewie."

They repeated the process on both the Wookiee and Threepio. The scanner seemed to be working perfectly. Although Leia had no idea what the normal readings for a Wookiee might be, the program did and he was well within normal range. Nor did the scanner have any problem recognizing Threepio as a droid. Just one more thing to test.

"Here, Aurora." She tossed the other woman a small metal chip, which Aurora snagged out of the air.

"What's this?"

"Recorder. Tuck it in your pocket and walk in. I want to see if this thing can recognize it."

The redhead nodded and walked out, tucking the chip into her pants pocket as she did. After a few seconds, she walked back in.

Leia scanned the readings as they appeared. Everything appeared as usual, blaster on her hip, vibro-knife tucked into the top of her left boot, and a small recording device in her left pocket.

"Did it register?" Lando asked curiously.

"Yep." Leia said with satisfaction. Apparently everything worked perfectly. She was about to turn off the program when something occurred to her and she glanced at the screen again. "Aurora, where's your lightsaber?"

"Here." Aurora touched her lower back, turning and raising the edge of her shirt slightly so that Leia could see a glimpse of the hilt. "Why?"

"Because it's not registering on here."

"Really?" Aurora looked intrigued. "Not at all?" She pulled out the deactivated hilt and studied it.

Lando came over to study the screen. "No, nothing. It's not even showing that there's something there."

Leia was frowning at the computer screen. "Are you sure this thing is up to date?"

"It's the latest software." Lando tapped the screen in thought. "Maybe that's the problem. Maybe it's _too_ new."

Chewie yowled and Lando nodded at him. "Right. Lightsabers weren't ever exactly common weapons to begin with; the Jedi were pretty much the only ones who ever used them, and they've been gone for a couple of decades now. Plus, it's not like they just became obsolete. They were…" He paused looking for the right word.

"Purged." Aurora said softly.

Lando nodded. "So, really, if you think about it, it's not too surprising that they don't register on new software as a weapon. How many beings out there have even seen one in holographs, let alone in person?"

"Which is pretty handy for us." Aurora said, spinning the lightsaber hilt across her palm. "We have a weapon that doesn't seem to register on weapons scanners." Her thumb flicked it and the blade appeared, humming quietly. "How about now?"

Leia glanced down. "It's showing an energy source now, but still not as a weapon. It's unclassified."

Aurora nodded. "So, it's only hidden when it's deactivated. I can still work with that." She let a small smile cross her lips as she gazed at the blazing blue-white light of the blade. "How familiar do you think Black Sun is with lightsabers?"

Chewie growled, amusement clear in his tone and Aurora laughed.

"Don't worry; I'm not getting cocky."

Lando's comlink going off interrupted the retort Leia was going to make. He pulled it from his belt, explaining as he did so, "I've got an eye on the port." He flicked on the com. "Go ahead."

"A ship has just arrived." A voice reported from the com. "The _Outrider_, piloted by – "

"Dash Rendar!" Leia finished. "What's he doing here? He's supposed to be watching Luke!"

"Any other ships with him?" Lando asked the comlink.

"No, he's alone."

"Thanks." Lando replied and shut off the com.

"Maybe Master Luke is riding with Captain Rendar." Threepio offered tentatively.

"No, Luke's not with him." Aurora replied grimly. "I'd be able to feel him."

"Then let's go find out exactly where he is." Leia stated firmly, her mouth set tightly.

_Page Break_

They caught Dash halfway from the spaceport, traveling in a pubtrans cab. Lando swung their rental vehicle over and waved down the cab. When Dash got out, he looked horrible, pale with dark circles under his eyes.

Aurora felt a rush of fear. Something had happened, something bad.

"Is Luke okay?" Leia demanded, her voice taut with fear.

"Yeah, he's fine." Even Dash's voice sounded off, its usual brash tones subdued.

"Why are you here? You're supposed to be guarding him." Leia couldn't quite keep the accusation out of her voice.

Dash simply stared at her. "He's fine. He doesn't need _my _help."

"You don't look so good." Lando said, studying him. "Trouble?"

"Long story."

"Which is probably best not told out here in the open." Aurora interrupted. Now that she was certain Luke was okay, she was once more conscious of possible eavesdroppers. "Get into the speeder. You can tell us on the way."

"What happened?" Leia demanded once they were under way.

"Aurora told you about the messenger droid?"

She nodded impatiently. "Yes. What happened once you arrived on Bothawui?"

"Well, we got buzzed by an Imperial patrol, but a little fancy flying and we avoided them." A little of Dash's normally cocky personality surfaced. "The kid's not bad." He added. "Once we got down to the surface of the planet, we caught pubtrans to the Intergalactic Trade Mission where Melan said to meet him. We had a little trouble getting past the guard since we didn't have a pass, but he was a civic minded soul." A small smirk appeared.

"So, you bribed the guard and then what?" Leia said.

"We had a little squabble with an overly officious protocol droid." Dash said, giving Threepio a suspicious look. The golden droid began to object, probably to defend his counterpart's actions, but Aurora clapped her hand over his voicebox and Dash continued. "But eventually we got in to see the Bothan, who was already expecting us. Anyway, turns out the Bothans bribed some high-ranking Imperial and found out about some huge construction project the Empire has going on. They've been pouring all kinds of credits into it. The Bothans tried to get a slicer droid into the main computer complex on Coruscant in order to get the plans, but it was a no go. They did manage to find out when one of the supercomputers was being shipped to Bothawui and set up a plan to nab it. The kid volunteered to help out and roped me into it." He frowned slightly.

"I'm sure the word 'reward' was mentioned somewhere." Aurora said dryly.

Dash gave her a dirty look, but began speaking again. "The Empire had set up this plan to conceal the supercomputer in a freighter full of fertilizer."

"Fertilizer?" Lando interrupted trying not to laugh. "You're kidding me?"

"Yeah, that was pretty much Luke's response too. Anyway, we hooked up with this squad of Bothan pilots in some ancient Y-Wings. The kid spent a few days training them up while we waited for the guy with the coordinates to arrive, which, get this, he had gotten from Black Sun. Melan says Black Sun's been courting the Rebellion."

Leia and Lando exchanged quick glances. Apparently Guri had been telling the truth.

"So, Luke and the Bothans and me flew out to meet this freighter. It came out right where it was supposed to. The kid ordered it to heave to and the pilot tried some shavit about carrying fertilizer, but nobody was buying it. The freighter captain tried to run for it, and we pursued. Then he opened fire." A dark look crossed Dash's face. "Still, things were going pretty good until the freighter suddenly launched a missile." He stopped speaking looking down. "I had it. I know I had it." He whispered almost to himself.

"Dash?" Leia asked gently.

"I missed, okay? Tried to take out the missile, but I missed and it took out the Bothans instead. Six of them."

Aurora closed her eyes, the impact of Dash's words washing over her. All those lives gone, just like that. Those poor Bothans. From what Dash had said about Luke training them, it didn't sound like they had even been in combat before and to just die like that. And something like this would be devastating for an ego like Dash's. He never seemed to believe he could fail at anything and for it to happen in a way that caused lives to be lost. No wonder he looked like shavit.

And Luke. They'd been under his command. How he must be blaming himself for the whole fiasco.

In the front seat, Leia spoke again. Her voice was still gentle, but firm. A leader who, even though she hated it, had long ago accepted that war meant deaths. "Go on, Dash. Did you get the supercomputer?"

Dash took a deep breath, but continued, his voice strained. "Luke did. He took out the freighter's engines and forced the captain to surrender. We took it onboard the _Outrider_, but Melan said it was protected and encrypted. He couldn't open it there, but had techs that could. He took it to some outpost on Kothlis. The kid went along to protect it, but sent me here to update you."

Gazing at the man's stricken features, Aurora also guessed Luke had sent Dash away to recover from his failure.

"Any idea what these plans are?" Lando asked.

"No. The Bothans have some kind of hot specialists on Kothlis who are going to pull them out of the computer." He replied in what was almost a monotone.

Lando considered him for a moment. "Hey, lighten up, Dash. Things get heavy in the middle of battle. Anybody can miss-"

"Not me!" Dash snarled. "I don't miss! I should have clipped that missile! Bothans _died_ because I missed, you understand?"

Silence filled the small vehicle as Chewie continued to thread his way through traffic on their way back to the casino. No one knew what to say, and they all sat quietly, wrapped in their own thoughts. Aurora's were fixed firmly on an outpost several systems away where a certain blue-eyed pilot would have arrived by now, intent on protecting the unknown contents of a computer, despite the danger to himself.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

A/N: I don't know if anyone is even still reading this; I realize that the updates have been long in coming and I apologize for it. Being a professor is more work than I expected and absolutely devours your free time. But, once I indulge myself with a laptop that actually has a working network connection, then I can shamelessly work on fanfiction during office hours…

Aurora watched Leia smile politely at the woman in front of her, but she could tell something was wrong. Whatever the scanner was telling Leia about Guri was troubling the princess.

"Care for some refreshment?" Leia asked now.

"Tea would be fine." Guri replied.

"Threepio, fix two cups of the special tea blend, would you, please?"

Aurora went on instant alert. The special blend was actually a sleeping potion that would knock the woman out for several hours so that they could examine her and anything the woman was carrying. That Leia was using it this fast meant that something on the scanner was really off.

She watched the two women exchange meaningless small talk as Threepio prepared and served the tea. Guri thanked him and sipped hers while continuing the conversation.

Aurora waited. It should only take a few minutes for the concoction to knock her out.

Twenty minutes later, she was still waiting. Leia was beginning to look a little disconcerted. Either Threepio had screwed up somehow, the potion was a dud, or Guri was far more than she appeared to be. From the way Leia kept glancing at the computer screen in front of her, she had a bad feeling it was the latter.

This was confirmed when Guri suddenly sighed and said, "All right, Leia Organa, I think this has gone on long enough."

Leia blinked. "Excuse me?"

Guri held up the heavy mug she was holding. With only a little effort, her hand squeezed it, shattering it into shards. "I can do that to your head if I wish." The blonde said with a cool smile. "You probably have a weapon hidden somewhere, but I warn you, I am much faster than you, and if you attempt to reach your weapon, I can get to you before you, or your friend, get to it."

Aurora's hand drifted to her back, but she stayed it, keeping her eyes on Leia while she played it out.

"Suppose I believe you. What do you want?"

"You are going to accompany me from this place. You will tell the Wookiee in the hall to stay here as we leave; convince him, otherwise he dies."

"Where are we going?" Leia asked, her face and voice still calm.

"Do not concern yourself with that. Just do as you are told and you will survive to get there."

"I don't think so." The princess told her. "Whoever – or whatever – you are, I bet you aren't faster than a blaster bolt. Lando? Dash?"

The door to the bedroom opened and both men appeared, blasters already trained on Guri.

"You might be wrong." The blonde woman answered contemplatively, watching them.

The door to the hall opened and Chewie appeared, his bowcaster aimed at her back.

Guri glanced at him and then over to where Aurora had silently drawn her own blaster.

"Could be." Leia replied, also glancing around. "But you'd have to be really fast to avoid being hit by four bolts."

Guri glanced around again, her gaze pausing on Aurora for several long moments before she turned back to Leia. "You have the advantage, it would seem. What do you propose?"

Which was a really good question. What did they do with her now?

"Restrain her for now." Leia decided. "Use the cuffbands _and_ the steel cable. Looks like you were right about her not being human." She said to Aurora.

Aurora drifted over to glance at the computer screen and pursed her lips in a silent whistle.

"What?" Lando asked.

"Well, first off, according to this, her skin's only about ten standard years old."

Lando glanced at their captive appreciatively. "Damn good looking ten year old."

"She breathes air and her heart pumps blood, but there's something off about both organs. The scanner doesn't recognize what tissue her muscles are made out of and her body temp is about ten degrees cooler than average." Aurora studied Guri thoughtfully.

"So, definitely not human then." Lando said.

"Not unless she's a corpse." Aurora replied dryly.

"The program also doesn't recognize her as any one of the eighty-six thousand alien species it's programmed to identify nor any kind of standard droid." Leia added.

Lando frowned. "This is not good."

"When is it ever?" Aurora asked.

_Page Break_

Chewie finished restraining the captive and stepped back. He growled something that was decidedly unhappy.

"Chewie doesn't think this is a very good idea." Lando translated. "I agree with him."

Leia narrowed her eyes as she turned to face them. "Look, I know you owe Han and you want to take care of me, but we need to do this."

Dash, who had kept his blaster trained on Guri, spoke up for the first time. "You're going to waltz into the heart of the Empire, just like that?"

"I have some connections on Coruscant." Leia replied. "That's where our friend here came from. Somebody is playing games I don't much like. Luke is in danger; this…person who says she represents Black Sun is our only link to them."

Lando looked up from where he had continued to study Guri. "You know, there were rumors a few years back about human replica droids. Seems like I heard somebody had perfected the method, got them good enough so you couldn't tell the difference between one of the replicas and a real human by looking. That was about ten, twelve years back. It would fit with the age the scanner gives us about her." He glanced back at Guri, who simply smiled, and said nothing.

"So what if it is a droid?" Dash asked. "What good does it do for you to know that?"

Leia tapped a finger against her lips. "Not much good at all. But if we can get to whoever sent her, maybe that does. She's got to be worth a lot to them."

Chewie growled.

"Chewbacca says that if you go to Coruscant, he is going as well."

Leia narrowed her eyes at Threepio who lifted his golden arms in defense. "Please do not blame me. I'm only translating what he said."

Leia opened her mouth, but Aurora beat her to it. "I'm going too."

"Au-"

"Not open to discussion." The Jedi told her. "Remember our earlier conversation? This is me making the final call."

Chewie roared his approval and Leia glared at them both.

"Fine, you can go with me. Lando, you and Dash wait here for Luke. We'll take Guri with us. Whoever or whatever she is, she's our pass."

"How are you going to get there?" Dash asked. "Book a compartment on a liner? They check those things going into Coruscant, you know."

"I'll contact the Alliance and have them supply us with a small ship." Leia decided.

"I don't like it." Lando said.

"Why not just take her ship?" Dash asked. "It's bound to be cleared."

"And maybe blow ourselves to tiny pieces? We've already determined she's not the most trustworthy being we've ever met. Could somebody steal your ship?" Aurora asked scathingly.

"They wouldn't get very far if they did." Dash said, some of his bravado resurfacing.

"I still don't like it." Lando said.

Leia had had enough of everyone questioning her authority. Bad enough she'd had to give in to Chewie and Aurora, but enough was enough. "I'm not asking you to like it, I'm telling you to do it." She said flatly.

A somewhat shocked silence followed and Leia felt a trifle smug, until she noticed that Aurora was only silent because she was biting her hand to keep from laughing. That deflated Leia a little.

"Excuse me." Guri suddenly spoke into the quiet.

Leia turned away from Aurora to face the blonde…woman. "What?"

"There is an easier way."

"What are you talking about?" The princess demanded.

"You want to go to Imperial Center and meet with the leadership of Black Sun, correct?"

"That was the general idea."

"That is why I was sent – to provide you escort for such a trip."

"Then why the threats?" Aurora asked.

"It was the fastest way."

"I wouldn't trust her, Leia." Lando said.

"I don't, but I'm reasonable. Go on."

"It will be very risky for you to try to sneak past the Imperial pickets around Imperial Center. I can greatly lessen that risk."

"No offense, but Lando is right. Why should we trust you?" Leia asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Because I work for Prince Xizor." Guri replied calmly.

Lando and Dash inhaled sharply and Aurora's face went abruptly blank.

Leia looked at them, one brow raised in question.

"Xizor is the _head_ of Black Sun." Dash explained.

"I can arrange for you to speak with him, if you like." Guri offered.

Leia frowned at her. "He's here?"

"I have his private comlink codes."

"I don't like this." Lando said, nervously tapping the blaster he still held.

"You don't like anything lately." Leia told him.

Chewie harned. He apparently didn't like it either.

"You are wanted by the Empire, as are your companions. I can arrange disguises; get you past customs and straight to the prince. It would eliminate much of the risk." Guri sounded quite reasonable.

Leia sighed. "All right, we can at least listen to what your master has to say."

Lando and Chewie both opened their mouths to protest, but Leia waved at them to be quiet.

"May I stand?" Guri asked politely.

"Yes. Dash, unbind her."

"There is no need." Guri told him, standing smoothly. She flexed her arms and the wrist cuffs popped apart as if they were made of cheap plastic. She took a deep breath and strained slightly, and the steel cables wound around her groaned then snapped.

"Oh, man." Lando said, looking ill.

Aurora's hand flexed as if she wanted to grab her lightsaber, but she remained still, simply watching silently as Guri crossed to the room's comlink and activated it. After a few minutes a deep masculine voice answered.

"Yes?"

"Guri, Highness. I have Princess Leia Organa here. She would like to speak with you."

"Where's the image?" Lando asked.

"My master prefers not to send it out, even on a shielded channel." Guri explained while Leia stepped forward.

"Greetings, Prince Xizor."

"Ah, Princess Leia. How delightful to make your acquaintance at last."

Leia raised her eyebrows at Aurora at the sound of the compelling voice. Aurora's face went even blanker, if that was possible.

"Your…droid here says you wish to see me?" Leia said to the com.

"Indeed. I have information that might be of use to you."

"Concerning….?"

"The attempted assassination of Luke Skywalker. A friend of yours, is he not?"

Leia repressed the urge to gasp. They were on the right track at least; Xizor knew of the plot against Luke. "We are comrades, yes." She replied. "Tell me, how do you know of the attempts on Luke Skywalker's life?"

"Not over the comlink." He told her. "We must discuss such matters face-to-face."

She ignored Aurora's muttered, "How convenient," as that fascinating voice continued. "If you will allow Guri to escort you, I will explain all when you arrive."

She hesitated, looking at her friends. "I will need to discuss this development first."

"Of course" He returned smoothly. "Simply have Guri contact me again once you have decided on your course of action."

"Thank you."

"I look forward to hearing from you again, Princess Leia."

Leia repressed a shiver at the warmth that was conveyed in the smooth voice.


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

A/N: I thought it might be time to catch up on what our hero has been doing all this time. After all, I can't let the girls have all the fun.

_Meanwhile, in a prison cell on Bothawui…._

Luke let his head thump back against the wall behind him, feeling the coldness of the stone seep into his tunic as he surveyed the cell he was currently in.

It could have been worse. The beings who had captured him had taken his comlink and lightsaber, but they had been relatively gentle with him so far.

And as far as prisons go, this one wasn't too bad. It was plain, but clean, containing only the cot upon which he was sitting and a shallow hole in the far corner which was obviously meant to serve as a latrine; not the most aesthetic of 'freshers, but at least it didn't look as if it had been used much. And if the walls were a dull grey and the light dim, at least there was a window, albeit small and completely covered in a strong metal mesh. Still, it was a window.

The cot he sat on might have been hard and the mattress thin, but they'd given him a blanket.

All in all, not the worst prison cell he'd ever been in.

A rueful smile tugged at his mouth. When did getting thrown in a cell become such a common occurrence that he could now rate them as good or bad? Now there was something that he hadn't considered when he was staring longingly at the stars back on Tatooine.

He shifted, pulling his legs up so that he could rest his arms on his knees as he contemplated his situation. Everything had happened so fast that he hadn't really had a moment to think about the events.

After he had sent Dash to update Aurora and Leia, he had followed Melan to a safehouse where the techs were going to try to crack the computer that they had captured. They had barely started, just long enough for the techs to utter a few exclamations of disbelief at what they had, and then the door had burst open and the shooting started. Without even thinking about it, Luke had grabbed his lightsaber and ignited it, blocking an incoming shot before it could hit one of the techs standing behind him. Others weren't so fortunate; he saw two take direct hits and go down. Next to him, Melan had produced a small hold-out blaster and was returning fire. He'd taken out the lead attacker, but there were quite a few more behind him and they'd come through the door in a wave of blaster fire.

Luke had done his best to protect the unarmed techs in the room, but there were too many shooters. Blaster bolts were hitting walls, consoles and living beings with equal impartiality.

Melan had obviously agreed with the futility of trying to stop them, because he'd yelled for Luke to come this way and the two of them had followed the last of the techs, who'd managed to yank the computer free and flee through a side door. They'd brought up the rear, Luke blocking the incoming blaster fire with his lightsaber and Melan firing back at their pursuing attackers. Or at least he'd fired back until his blaster had run dry. He'd only had time to tell Luke to run before a blaster bolt had caught him and he'd gone down.

Dropping to one knee, Luke tried to help the injured Bothan.

"G-G-Go!" Melan had managed, obviously in pain. "Leave me, get out!"

But there had been more black-clad attackers coming and outrageous odds or not, you didn't leave fallen comrades behind.

He'd risen to his feet, planting himself squarely between the fallen Bothan and the incoming troops.

"Idiot!" Melan gasped. "L-Leave!"

But Luke had ignored him, chopping in half the first blaster to reach them and then spinning to swing at the next. In the back of his mind he had wondered why they weren't firing anymore, but Melan had distracted him, grasping his leg weakly and murmuring, "Luke, thanks. I-" before his body had gone unmistakably limp in death.

There hadn't really been time to process Melan's death. More beings were crowding into the room – ten, twelve, fifteen. Too many to count; too many to stop.

And yet none of them were firing anymore.

What -?

"Turn off your saber," the one in front had commanded. "You can't win."

Which was nice of the bad guy to point out, but Luke had already come to that conclusion himself.

He glanced around, his mind desperately searching for an escape route, but there wasn't anything, even with the Force.

Resigned, he'd moved his thumb, turning off his lightsaber.

"Wise move." The first being said again. It was an alien, reptilian in appearance with shiny, black scales and a full set of very impressive teeth. A Barabel. They had a reputation as excellent hunters.

"My people have great respect for Jedi Knights," The Barabel had said. "And I am sorry I must do this, but it is business. Take his weapon."

Another black-clad figure had moved forward to take the silver cylinder from his hand.

"What do you want?" Luke had asked, directing the question at the Barabel.

Those sharp teeth appeared again in what might have been a smile. "Sorry, but we want you, Skywalker."

Those words ran through his head now and he couldn't help the slight snort of dark amusement that escaped him, because really, was there anyone in the galaxy right now that _didn't _seem to want him, for one reason or another?

A voice that he had absolutely no control over reminded him that Aurora probably didn't, not after the way he had completely ignored what had happened between them.

Any amusement he'd been feeling fled completely.

He'd been doing his best not to think of her at all, and events had so far been cooperating with him; moving along so quickly that there hadn't been time to dwell on anything, let alone Aurora.

But now, it looked like he'd have nothing but time, and while he knew he should be looking for ways to get out or to at least figure out why he'd been captured at all, he couldn't help his attention from turning to his relationship with the too lovely for his peace of mind Aurora Kenobi. Because frankly, he had no idea what to do about her. The situation they were in was the very one he had been trying to avoid. And while Aurora may have intended what had happened between them to put an end to all of the sexual tension, it seemed to have the exact opposite effect, because instead of sating his desire for her, it had made it worse. Now that he'd had a taste, all he could think of was getting another.

It was actually with some relief that Luke heard the lock on his cell door click open and the Barabel step through. At least, he thought it was the same Barabel. He wasn't overly familiar with the species, but it looked the same, and something made Luke think it was a female.

"I don't suppose you want to tell me what's going on?" He asked, not moving from his position on the cot.

The Barabel made a move that Luke interpreted as her species' version of a shrug. "No reason why not. No point in being unpleasant. There's nothing you can do about it."

Now that was depressing. She wasn't even being cocky; just matter of fact.

"I am Skahtul. I make my living as a bounty hunter, as do the others with me. It seems there is a large reward – a _very_ large reward – offered to whoever delivers Luke Skywalker to them, alive and well, no questions asked. Realizing what a difficult chore this might be, a group of us decided to band together. Better to have a portion of a lot of credits than none. Lucky for us, you and those blasted Bothans have increased the amounts of the shares the survivors of the attack will collect. It's the same pie, but there are now fewer of us to divide it among."

Luke felt his heart sink a little. Bounty hunters. He knew it. But before he could respond, she was speaking again.

"Oddly enough, there is a _second_ reward being offered for Luke Skywalker; this one is for him – you – dead. Fortunately for you, the second amount is not quite as large as the first, so we plan to keep you healthy until we can collect it."

"There's a third option," Luke offered, keeping his voice calm with effort. "How about I give you more than either bounty to let me go?"

Skahtul laughed, a surprisingly pleasant sound coming from that visage. "Oh, certainly, we – my colleagues and I – would be open to such an offer."

Luke smiled in return. Although he didn't have much money himself, he could always borrow it from Leia and then pay her back later. "How much are we talking about?"

The Barabel named a figure that had Luke's jaw dropping in shock.

"Whoa! You could buy half a city with that many credits!"

"With enough left over for you and six or eight of your friends to retire upon and live happily ever after." Skahtul agreed. "Did we miss something in our search? You have a credit tab with that much in your pocket, perhaps?"

"I wish." Luke replied. He doubted that even Leia, beneficiary of all of Alderaan's surviving resources that she was, had that much money. And even if she did, he'd never be able to pay her back, no matter how long he lived.

The bounty hunter laughed again. "It is good that you maintain your sense of humor." A serious note entered that gravelly voice. "But be warned. Any attempt to escape will be met with maximum resistance. We know how resourceful Jedi Knights are. You are worth a few thousand more alive than dead, however, better to collect the smaller bounty than to risk losing it all. Is this understandable?"

"Yeah, I get it." Luke said.

"Good." She hesitated a moment. "It's not personal, you know. Some of us even admire what you've done against the Empire, having some sympathies in that direction, but business is business. Behave yourself and you will be treated well. You'll be kept in here, but you'll be fed and unmolested until we arrange for our benefactor to pay us and collect you."

"You want to tell me who this 'benefactor' is?"

"Not to worry, you'll find out soon enough."

Skahtul left, closing the cell door definitively behind her.

Luke dropped his chin onto his arms, his mind racing. Captured and sold to the highest bidder. He felt like a piece of merchandise. A very expensive piece of merchandise, though. Good thing the second bidder who wanted him dead wasn't feeling quite as generous as the first bidder. He wondered who it was.

Oh, not the first one. He was pretty sure that he knew exactly who was willing to throw around huge sums of money in order to have him delivered to them, and frankly that thought was almost more frightening than the idea that someone was willing to pay an almost equally huge amount to have him killed.

But if Vader was the first bidder, the one who wanted him alive, then who was the second? Because Aurora was right; Vader didn't want him dead. He wanted him handed over alive and well so that he could twist and manipulate him until he surrendered to the dark side.

So who _was_ the second bidder? Because that's who must have been responsible for hiring the crew chief at Gall and the group of swoop troopers on Tatooine.

Not that it really mattered, because once Vader showed up and collected him, the point was pretty much moot. Either he'd cease to care, or the point would become rather academic, for obvious reasons.

He shuddered. Best to just leave before Vader showed up.

Right. But how exactly was he going to do that?


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

A/N: I'm going to try and switch back and forth between Luke and Aurora from now on, as what he's up to is a little important to the story.

Aurora turned her face into the rising wind, letting it blow away some of the achiness in her head. She was stressed, she knew it. But she couldn't keep herself from tensing up. Her shoulders were beginning to ache from the stiff way she was holding them and an almost constant headache was pounding in her temples. This situation was getting out of control. She knew this was a bad idea. Going to Coruscant with Guri was stupid to say the least. Allowing Leia to go was even stupider, and she knew what Luke would have to say about this whole thing. They were both in the top ten Most Wanted list and yet here they were preparing to sneak into the heart of the Empire, and at the instigation of the head of Black Sun, for Force's sake. Maybe Master Yoda was right about her and Luke being too reckless. He was off somewhere with some supercomputer that the Empire was desperate to get back and she was trusting the word of the head of the largest criminal organization in the galaxy.

She turned her head slightly to glare at the woman sitting in front of her. Of course, it wasn't entirely her idea. She and Chewie had done their damndest to talk Leia out of this, but the princess was even more stubborn than Luke sometimes and was determined to do this. Aurora knew that desperation to find Han was driving Leia, but still. She _knew_ this was a bad idea.

"Should have just knocked her out." She muttered under her breath.

Chewie, sitting next to her, managed to hear her over the sound of the speeder's engines and growled his agreement.

They'd both given it serious consideration, and Aurora could have done it with minimal fuss. Yoda had showed both her and Luke a simple technique using the Force. But even as she considered it, she knew she wouldn't do it, because if she had been in Leia's place and it had been Luke who was captured, she would have been willing to risk anything too, to get him back safely.

Which was why she now found herself sitting in the back of this speeder, racing through the rainforests of Rodia as it tried to reach Guri's ship before the gathering storm hit.

Why did she always find herself in these stupid situations?

A rumble of thunder overhead seemed to punctuate the thought.

_Page Break_

Several days had passed. Luke had been keeping track of them by the light coming through the tiny window. He'd been entertaining himself by practicing his levitation, hovering a few centimeters over the cot, whenever he could.

Hearing footsteps approaching now, he lowered himself to the thin mattress. It was better not to let anyone know that he could do this.

As before, the lock clicked open and Skahtul slinked into the room.

"So, has my buyer paid up?" He asked her.

"Not exactly."

There was something in her voice… Luke rose from the cot and shifted to face her directly. "What does that mean?"

"It means that after a discussion with my…colleagues, we realized that you might be even more valuable than we thought."

"More valuable? Come on." He said in disbelief.

"There are two factions who want you. It was suggested that we might be able to pump up the price by playing them off against each other."

Luke blinked. "You're going to have them _bid_ for me? Like a slave?" It was probably ridiculous, but he couldn't help but feel insulted.

"Something like that."

"Who are these people?"

Skahtul made that shrugging motion again. "To be honest, we don't know. Our contacts have been very, ah, circuitous. Agents of agents of agents kind of thing."

Luke stared at her.

"Of course," she continued, "We must be very, ah, circumspect in our dealings. Players with the kind of money we are talking about must be very powerful. A misstep might be most dangerous. Fatal."

"So you solicit higher offers from them. What if the ones who want me dead come up with more credits?"

"Like I said before, it's not personal, just business."

He raised a brow. "You'll excuse me if I take it personally." He wondered if he should tell her exactly who one of those bidders was. It might make them decide against the idea of this bidding war. After all, nobody really wanted to get on Vader's bad side. Then again, it would take time to communicate the terms and bids back and forth; time in which he might be able to escape. If he told Skahtul that Vader was one of the bidders, than she might just contact him directly and hand Luke over.

Before he could decide, the Barabel had inclined her head slightly and left the cell.

Well, that decided that. Time to go.

_Page Break_

Aurora eyed the guard standing near the customs gate. He was studying the holocard ID that Leia had given him, the one Guri had provided before telling them to meet her at the coordinates she had provided. It was too dangerous to travel together. It made sense, but Aurora was still suspicious of a trap. Which is why she was warily watching the guard now. They were going to be in a lot of trouble if this turned into a fight.

"Purpose of your visit?" The guard asked Leia.

"Business." She replied. Her voice clicked and buzzed unnaturally behind the full mask she was wearing. Guri had provided them with disguises, as promised, and Leia was now dressed in the former clothing of an Ubese bounty hunter named Boushh. Nobody had wanted to ask why Boushh no longer needed his effects. They were all pretty sure they knew why.

The guard was still harassing Leia. "I see you are licensed to carry that weapon, but we do not take kindly to people who use them on Imperial Center."

Leia wisely did not reply. The guard, who seemed to be spoiling for a fight, didn't appear to like that.

"I think we'll have to take that helmet off." He said smugly. "Just to be certain you match the holograph. One can't be too careful."

"It will damage my lungs to breathe this air without my filters." Leia replied in Ubese.

"I can arrange an atmosphere room –" The guard began only to be interrupted by a large black, brown and gray Wookiee with a buzz cut and large, dark, masklike patches around his eyes who grumbled at him.

"What is your problem?" The guard asked, disgruntled at having his fun ruined.

Chewie growled again, sounding irritated.

"I don't care if you are late for an appointment." The guard told him, obviously delighting in his petty power to disrupt everyone's schedules.

Aurora bent her head, allowing her loose hair to cover her face and closed her eyes, concentrating fiercely on the guard, and ignoring everything else. This had to work.

_You are holding up the line._

She vaguely sensed the guard glance uncertainly at the lengthening line of beings trying to get through customs, but kept her focus on his thoughts, weaving her own into them.

_Your superiors will be angry at how long it's taking you to process these beings._

She felt his petty need to prove his own superiority over this alien scum warring with the suggestions she was trying to plant. Finally, she felt his resistance break and with a huff of irritation, the guard suddenly thrust Leia's ID back at her. "Move along, bounty hunter. I have others to process."

Aurora let her shoulders slump, letting out a breath. That had been harder than she'd thought.

Leia took her ID back without a word and moved along. Several minutes later, Aurora and Chewie joined her.

"Okay, now we go and see my contact. This section of the Underground is relatively safe, but still not a place where you want to relax your guard."

Chewie nodded, patting his bowcaster. He keened a question.

"If you just asked why we aren't going directly to see Guri, I want to see if I can't hedge our bets a little first." Leia replied.

"As long as it's fast. I _really_ want to get out of this outfit." Aurora said grimly.

Leia glanced at her and couldn't quite contain her smirk.

"Shut up. If I have one more being grab my ass, I'm going to take their hand off at the wrist."

"Come on, Aurora. It's just a disguise." Leia told her.

Chewie whuffled in laughter while Aurora narrowed purple eyes at Leia. "Next time, I get to be the bounty hunter and _you _can wear the skimpy outfit."

"Deal." Leia said, heading for the nearest stairs with Chewie at her side.

Aurora hurried after them, staring at her pink-dyed arm. "Why did it have to be a Zeltron?"

They made their way quickly through the dark, twisted passages that made up the byways of the Southern Underground. Leia had thought Mos Eisley was bad, but compared to this, it was a vacation resort. Beggars were everywhere; some panhandling, some simply sitting as if they didn't have the strength to do more. The air was slimy and close, reeking of a hundred different scents, none of them good. Aurora had already taken note of at least five different spice deals that they had passed, and was certain she had missed at least a dozen more. Every illicit thing that you could think of was being offered from dark corners and shadowy doorways. Several times, beings spotting Aurora dressed in her Zeltron outfit had begun to approach them, but a threatening growl from Chewie had them backing off.

Somewhere in the corridor behind them there was a shrieking cry that dwindled off into a liquid gurgle. No one around them even broke stride.

"Join the Imperial Navy," Aurora quoted under her breath. "Travel to exotic, distant lands. Meet exciting, unusual people." She didn't bother finishing the old joke, which when surrounded by the Empire's castoffs wasn't all that funny anymore, but the punch line drifted through her head anyway as they continued through the dark, stinking tunnels.

_And kill them._

_Page Break_

Luke took several deep, cleansing breaths. He'd managed this several times now, and it should be getting easier, but influencing someone's mind continued to be a difficult task. You had to concentrate utterly on the task and you couldn't have any doubts that it would work. If you did, that just caused the whole thing to collapse.

Building up the idea that he wanted to plant, he slowly reached out until he could sense the mind of the guard in the hall.

The man was bored. His feet hurt and he vaguely needed to use the 'fresher. _This was pointless, having him stand here. The prisoner was locked behind a friggin' dura-steel door. There was no way anybody was getting through it. Stupid and boring as hell._

Luke concentrated.

"Open the door."

A sense of confusion now.

"Huh? Who's there-?"

"You must open the door."

_But -?_

"I…must open the door."

"You must put down your rifle and open the door now."

Of course. Why was he questioning this?

As Luke watched through the small window in the door, the guard slowly bent and sent his blaster rifle on the ground.

A feeling of elation trickled through Luke. _Got him!_

The guard suddenly stopped, looking confused.

Whoops! Luke cleared his mind of any feeling of triumph and concentrated again. "Open the door."

The sense of confusion vanished. "Yes….open the door."

There was a slight scraping noise as the guard slipped in his key card, and then the lock clicked open.

Fighting not to let any excitement slip in, Luke stepped away from the open door. "You're very tired. You need to come in and lie on the cot and take a nice nap."

"Cot. Take a nap." The guard moved past Luke into the cell, his eyes already drooping with fatigue. As he passed, Luke slipped the keycard out of his hand and peeked into the hallway. Nobody there. Silently, he slipped out the door and eased it shut behind him, hearing the lock click back into place.

In the cell, the guard was already starting to snore quietly.

Luke finally let the grin show. Finally. Now, he just needed to find his lightsaber and then escape. No problem. He was actually beginning to feel like a real Jedi Knight.

Not five minutes later he was regretting that thought, gritting his teeth as he moved the lightsaber again to block the incoming blaster fire. He'd thought it would be so easy. He just had to find his stuff, and then find an exit and slip out, and the first part had actually worked. Right up until that Nikto had appeared behind him. Now here he was, facing the entire group of bounty hunters and doing his best to keep his lightsaber between him and all of the incoming blaster fire. The Force was with him, which was a blessing, but what was really helping was the fact that most of the bounty hunters had been sleeping when the Nikto had raised the alarm. They had come stumbling out into the hall, half dressed, dazed and rather confused. Plus, there were so many of them in the narrow corridor that they kept getting in each other's way.

Luke decided that taking advantage of all that chaos right now was probably his only chance. He gritted his teeth and then plunged forward into the firefight, heading directly for the group of shooters. They broke apart in the face of their own blaster fire being reflected back at them, ensuring further chaos as blaster bolts bounced off walls and into living beings. The noise was horrendous, compounded further by all of the confused shouting.

"-look out, you fool –!"

"- there he is, get him - !"

"- watch it, watch it -!"

" – I'm hit!"

If the exit was too far, Luke wasn't going to make it. Deep in the Force though he was, parrying and blocking with amazing skill and speed, all it would take was one missed block and he was dead. But he continued, pushing all doubt aside as he cut and blocked, moving steadily forward.

Suddenly, the wall ahead to his left imploded, showering the corridor with smoking debris. Bounty hunters were thrown forward by the implosion, tumbling down the hall like broken toys. Several others fled in the face of the latest disaster, disappearing into the smoke that was beginning to fill the corridor.

The pandemonium got worse.

Luke paused, unsure if he should retreat or continue, then a familiar voice called out through the smoke.

"Luke?"

"Lando? Over here!"

More blaster fire was heard, this time directed away from him, and more bounty hunters fell to the floor.

Someone with a more level head than the rest shouted out, "Regroup! We're under attack!"

However, instead of trying to bring order to the chaos, the confusion just seemed to increase. Luke couldn't help the smile that crossed his face.

Lando appeared through the smoke, firing with what seemed to be casual ease into the milling bounty hunters.

"Like shooting snakes in a shoe box." He told Luke, smiling when he reached him. "You called for a cab?"

Luke grinned back at him. "Me? What makes you think I want to leave? I'm having fun here." He spun and chopped the barrel off of a nearby blaster. When it sputtered and sparked, its owner hissed and threw it away.

"I'm sure you are. However, I know some ladies who would be very unhappy to hear that you were attending this sort of party."

Luke inclined his head mockingly. "Well, we wouldn't want to upset the ladies. Perhaps we should go."

"This way."

With Lando leading the way and Luke blocking any blaster fire that came from behind, they made their way to the hole Lando had blasted in the wall and escaped into the night.

"I've got a, uh, _borrowed_ landspeeder parked over there." Lando said as he fired back into the hole in the wall. A startled yelp of pain indicated his shot had found its mark.

"The _Falcon_ is in the middle of a public park five minutes away. I left Threepio watching it."

Luke frowned. "Threepio? Where are Aurora, Leia and Chewie?"

"That's a long story. Better we get back to the ship before I tell it."

That certainly didn't sound good. But Lando was right, any questions were better saved for the safety of the _Falcon_.


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Luke came up the ramp into the familiar view of the _Falcon's_ main hold. For some reason, no matter how many places he traveled or how long he was away, this ship always appeared to him as a small slice of home. It might have had something to do with the fact that it was the first place he'd really been when he'd left Tatooine that first time. Or perhaps it was because of all the traveling he did. No matter how much his life twisted and turned, the _Falcon _was always the same, with that oddly homey smell of burned lubricant and dust.

But although it looked and smelled the same, something was missing. Perhaps it was just his knowledge that the ship was missing its master.

Before he could dwell on it too much, he heard Threepio's familiar, anxious voice.

"It's so good to see that you are all right, Master Luke." The golden droid said, clinking into view.

"Good to see you too, Threepio." He returned, as always responding politely to Threepio's slightly comical propriety.

Lando brushed past them on the way to the cockpit. "Move it, Luke. Not only do we have the bounty hunters to worry about, there's an Imperial convoy heading this way. They've just dropped out of hyperspace and into the system. "

Luke hurried after him, reaching for preflight switches even as he dropped into the familiar contours of the control seat, once more repressing a pang at Han's absence. "Yeah, anybody we know?"

"I didn't close enough to read nameplates, but the lead ship is a Star Destroyer."

"_Victory_-class?" Luke asked, trying to remember what Imperial destroyers had been near Bothawui lately.

"Bigger than that."

"_Imperial_-class?"

"Try again."

A cold shiver worked its way down his spine as he paused to look directly at Lando. "No."

"Yep. _Super_-class."

"Is it…._Executor_?"

"Like I said, I didn't get that close. But how many of those are there? They don't crank those babies up just for fun."

Luke stared out the viewport, not seeing the landscape in front of him. Vader. It had to be him. Lando was right; there just weren't that many _Super_-class Star Destroyers out there. What were the odds that another one of them just happened to be here. No, it was Vader. It had to be. And he was very likely coming to collect Luke.

Another cold shiver went down his spine. Shouldn't he know? Shouldn't he be able to sense Vader's presence? Especially if he was his -. Luke cut the thought off before it could form. Now was not the time to dwell on this.

"Let's finish the flight check fast," Lando told him. "I don't think we want to stick around here."

"I hear that." Luke replied grimly. A thought occurred to him. "Wait. Artoo is in my X-wing."

"I know. I spotted it. I've got a tractor beam with his name on it. I'll overfly the X-wing and pull it up; we'll stow it in the hull clips." Lando flipped a few switches and then studied the control screen. "We're going to slingshot out of here and hit lightspeed fast. Even if it isn't Vader in that monster, we don't want to tangle with it."

Luke nodded. He couldn't argue with that. He reached for the comm to signal Artoo. "Where are we going?"

"Back to Tatooine. That's where Leia wants us to go."

"Where is she?"

"Let's talk about that later, okay?" Lando said, knowing full well that Luke was going to be furious when he found out. He heard the ship's engines come online and reached for the throttle. "Better sit down back there, Goldie," he yelled over his shoulder. "We are about to be gone!"

_Page Break_

They had finally emerged from the labyrinth of tunnels into a more open area that resembled nothing so much as a large city square, covered by a domed roof. Aliens and humans moved around freely from shops to kiosks to stands, bartering and chattering. The lighting here was brighter than in the tunnels and the air at least a little fresher. The whole atmosphere seemed friendlier. Or perhaps that was simply the result of the armed guards stationed here and there around the area, dressed in some sort of uniform.

Leia moved briskly around the circle, passing a bakery, a weapons store, and some sort of restaurant. She finally stopped in front of a plant store.

"There."

Aurora and Chewie didn't say anything, but simply followed her inside. It was humid inside, but the wonderful smells more than made up for it. Aurora breathed deeply of the scent of growing things, eyeing the various plants with great appreciation. After the odors of the tunnels and even the market, this was paradise. They passed a variety of potted plants in varying shades, several small trees and ropes of hanging vines. There was even some sort of yellow fungus hanging down from the walls and ceiling.

"It produces oxygen without needing sunlight." Leia told her seeing her interest.

"Nice for living underground." Aurora replied. She took another deep breath of the oxygen-saturated air, trying to fill her lungs with it and expel the rankness that she had inhaled earlier.

Leia continued through the store, looking around carefully, before apparently spotting her quarry. An old Ho'Din appeared from around a clump of feather trees, his red and violet tentacled hair blending in with the branches.

"Good meeting. How may I assist you?"

"We're here to collect a debt, Master Gardener." Leia replied.

The Ho'Din looked amused. "I cannot recall that I owe anyone a debt. Certainly not strangers."

"Not even Leia Organa?"

A smile spread across the green face. "Ah, yes. The princess. I owe her my life and those of my entire family."

"She would have you aid us." Leia told him.

"And how do I know you are from Princess Organa?"

"How else would we know of your debt?"

The spindly alien nodded. "Reasonable. What would you have of me?"

Leia took a deep breath. "We need to know about Black Sun. Who runs it, how we might contact them."

"I was about to make tea. Would you care for some?"

"Another time, perhaps." The impatience was barely concealed in the princess' voice.

"Well, then." The gardener sighed. "Black Sun is led by the Falleen, Xizor. He is known variously as the 'Dark Prince,' or sometimes 'Underlord.' He is also the owner and president o f XTS – Xizor Transportation Systems – a more or less legitimate concern worth billions in itself. He seldom leaves Coruscant, has a palace that ranks with those of the Emperor and Darth Vader. On the surface, though portions of it extend deep underground."

The three exchanged glances. It matched what Guri had told them. Apparently on this at least, she had been on the level.

Leia nodded firmly and turned away. "Thank you, Master Gardener."

"You are welcome, princess."

She abruptly turned back. "Excuse me?"

He smiled. "Ho'Din are not limited to their eyes and ears, princess." His fleshy, varicolored "hair" twitched and moved. "We never forget our friends."

Leia bowed. "Then consider our debt balanced."

The Ho'Din bowed in return, a smile still playing about his mouth. "Nonsense. My grandchildren's grandchildren could never live long enough to repay you. But I am happy to have been of some small service. Move with care, princess. Black Sun is a formidable foe."

"I will. Thank you again, Master Spero."

He inclined his head, but his eyes moved to Aurora. "May the Force be with you, Jedi."

Aurora opened her mouth to deny it, then stopped. Instead, she simply inclined her head in return. "And with you, Master Gardner."

Outside in the street, Leia turned to them. "Well, it seems as if that much of Guri's story is true. Best we go and meet her."

Chewie growled, whether in agreement or disagreement was unclear.

It didn't take them long to meet Guri at the coordinates she had provided. It was some sort of park, the greenery a strident contrast to the dingy tunnels they had just traveled through and the bland permacrete and durasteel of the buildings surrounding them.

"It took you longer than expected." Guri said when they arrived.

"We stopped to see the sights." Aurora quipped.

Guri stopped glaring at Leia, whom she seemed to strongly dislike, to stare at Aurora. Those long intense stares the droid kept giving her were starting to get on her nerves, and she stared back, refusing to back down. What might have been a small smile crossed the blonde's lips, and then she was turning away. "Follow me."

Leia raised one brow in question at Aurora, who shrugged. She had no idea what it was about her that Guri seemed to find so fascinating. Perhaps it was because they had never bothered to introduce Aurora to the Black Sun agent, and had carefully avoided using her name, nor had they ever clarified her status. Maybe the droid was simply curious.

They followed Guri back into the underground where they proceeded to walk for hours. Aurora never thought she'd be thankful to the sadistic workouts Master Yoda had put them through, but it paid off when she found herself only slightly weary during the trek. Leia, not used to such rigorous exercise, looked exhausted before they finally came to a heavy, locked gate. Guri opened it and ushered them through.

They moved into what appeared to be some type of repulsor train station to find a short, squat, bald man waiting for them.

"Go with him." Guri told Leia.

"Where are you going?" The princess asked in surprise.

"Not your business. Just do as you are told and you will see Prince Xizor soon enough."

Without another word, she turned on her heel and walked away.

The bald man grinned at them, revealing teeth that had been covered in a reflective chrome finish.

Chewie showed his own teeth, which while not as shiny, were certainly larger. The bald man quit smiling and gestured to Leia. "This way."

He led them to a motorized cart waiting outside. It wasn't very large, but they managed to cram themselves into it, and then they were off. It was another long trip, although this time the tunnels they were traveling through were clean and well lit. Finally, the tunnel opened up into a largish chamber in which a bullet car floated on magnetic repulsors over a single rail track.

Aurora raised her brows. Wherever they were going must be pretty far away. Maglev cars were made to cover long distances in a hurry; something like three or four hundred kilometers an hour kind of hurry. Using them for short distances really wasn't worth it.

They followed their bald companion into the car and strapped in.

With a brief, "Go," from their guide, they were off.

The car moved smoothly and picked up speed fast. The yellow service lamps that circled the tunnel were soon a continuous blur of light. At this rate, they could easily be traveling half-way around the planet. She was beginning to worry that they might not have the faintest idea where they were when they arrived. Not that they had much choice. At this point, they were pretty much committed to the trip.

She glanced at Leia. She just hoped this turned out to be worth the risk.


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

The bullet car finally came to a stop and they exited into a huge room. The platform they stepped out onto was guarded by six men, all dressed in matching gray uniforms and armed with heavy blast rifles. Their faces were as expressionless as if they were wearing masks, and they didn't indicate in any way that they were even aware that three armed Rebels had just entered the room.

"This way." Their guide told Leia.

Two of the guards fell in behind them as they moved towards a thick door. Aurora really didn't like having them at her back and had to fist her hand to keep it from reaching for her lightsaber. This place was making her decidedly twitchy.

The thick door led to a large, arched corridor, wide enough to drive a speeder through, easily. The door closed behind them with a thud and Leia jumped visibly; her breath puffing out in a cloud of vapor in the cold air. Apparently Aurora wasn't the only one who was feeling jumpy.

A short distance ahead there was another door, not quite as thick as the first, but thick enough. A print reader let them through it, and on the other side were more guards.

"I guess your boss doesn't like guests much, huh?" Aurora asked the squat bald man. He just smiled, showing her his chrome teeth again.

A bank of four turbolifts were waiting for them, and at a gesture from their guide, they stepped into one. The guards didn't.

"Learned to trust us already?" Leia quipped.

Another chrome smile.

The lift stopped and opened, revealing another pair of guards.

"Guess not." Leia said.

There was more walking after that, down a branching maze of corridors, much of it through pitch darkness with their guide calling out directions. Aurora was wildly tempted to turn on her lightsaber, just to see the reaction from their guide, but she restrained it. Finally they came to a hallway with two tall, carved wooden doors at the end of it. Standing to either side of it were, naturally, two armed guards. This time though they were armed only with blasters, not rifles, and wore no armor. They were, however, rather large and Aurora had no doubt they knew how to handle themselves in hand-to-hand. One of them opened the doors as they approached.

"In there." The bald man told them, and then left without another word.

"What? No goodbye?" Aurora muttered. "And we were getting along so well."

Leia gave her a repressive look, before turning away and straightening her shoulders. Suddenly, despite the smelly, dirty clothing she wore and the tired lines on her face, she looked regal; every inch the princess.

Aurora envied her that. The best she could usually manage was intimidating, although Wes had told her once she was downright scary. But no one would ever call her regal.

She shook herself and followed Leia into the room, Chewie at her side.

Facing them was a tall, green-skinned, alien who rose from behind a vast desk. He gave Leia a broad smile.

"Ah, Princess Leia Organa. Welcome. I am Xizor."

Aurora heard Leia suck in her breath sharply and turned to check on her; surprised to see a faint flush on her cheeks.

"Your Highness. Thank you for having us."

There was a slightly breathy note to Leia's voice that Aurora didn't like. What in the galaxy was wrong with her?

"And this would be Chewbacca?" Xizor said, nodding at Chewie. "Welcome." Then his attention turned to Aurora. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I never caught your friend's name."

"This is my companion, Aurora." Leia said, still blushing faintly.

Something in Xizor's eyes suddenly sharpened and looked almost angry for a moment, although the expression on his face remained as affable as ever. "Aurora…Kenobi? Well." His eyes scanned her up and down once briefly, then he smiled again, and something in it had become a little warmer than previously. "I have, of course, heard of you, Commander. But for some reason, the stories never mentioned how beautiful you were. Welcome."

"Thank you." Aurora kept her own voice coolly polite. She didn't like this man. He was attractive enough; tall, with a beautifully toned body and a handsome face. But there was something about him that was making her skin crawl. Something in the way he looked at both her and Leia, as if he wasn't just picturing them naked, but already knew what they looked like. It was disconcertingly intimate and invasive.

Leia was having a slight problem controlling her breathing. She had heard a lot of things now about Prince Xizor, but why had no one ever mentioned he was _gorgeous_! She knew she was blushing, and cursed herself for behaving like an idiot, but really. Who could blame her? The man was unbelievable.

Speaking sharply to herself, didn't seem to help. Especially not when she introduced Aurora and Xizor smiled warmly at the other woman. Leia felt a twinge of jealousy. He should be smiling at _her_ like that. Then instantly felt ashamed of herself. What was the _matter_ with her? She was behaving like a giddy teenager being introduced to her favorite holostar.

Taking a firm grip on herself, she managed to respond politely when Xizor offered her a chair. They exchanged amicable small talk briefly. All the while, Leia was fighting to slow her breathing and to keep this strange….yearning under control. Once or twice she saw Aurora glance at her, but Xizor didn't seem to notice anything off.

"You must be tired." He said in that deep, smooth voice. "You should refresh yourself, change clothes, relax a bit before we delve into serious matters."

Leia wanted to giggle under the warm smile he gave her, but managed to restrain herself. "I didn't exactly bring my wardrobe with me."

Xizor waved one elegant hand. "Such things are easily remedied. I'll have Howzmin show you to your quarters. We have had other visitors from time to time, and a gracious host looks after his company's needs. Perhaps there are a few articles of clothing that you might find acceptable in your room. I have pressing business to which I must attend. Refresh yourself and rejoin me in a couple of hours."

Leia glanced at Chewie briefly, trying to decide if this was a good idea. Maybe they should just finish their business now and get out of here. She glanced back at the Falleen prince.

Xizor gave her a smile that had more than a little bit of heat to it. She felt the effect of that smile all the way down to her toes. "Yes. All right. We are a little tired."

As if on cue, the door behind them opened and their bald guide entered.

"Show Princess Leia and her companions to their rooms."

Howzmin nodded silently and gestured them out the door. Leia wanted to twist around for one more look at Xizor, but managed to control herself. She didn't want to look desperate.

As Howzmin led them down yet another hall, Leia argued furiously with herself over her reaction to Xizor. She had never been one to let a pretty face get to her, but there was no denying that that was exactly what she had done. She knew Xizor was a criminal and had probably done heinous things, but none of that had seemed to matter when he smiled at her. All she could think of was how tall and strong he was, how defined his cheekbones were, how his smile caused all manner of things to tighten low down in her body. Even now she found herself flushing in reaction.

This was insane! She was in love with Han. That meant something to her. She wasn't going to be swayed by some handsome prince into forgetting that. Even if he was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen.

Maybe if she just kept repeating that to herself, she would stick to it.

Next to her, Aurora bumped her arm. "You okay?"

"What?" Leia asked distracted. "Oh, yes. Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't know. You seemed a little…off in there."

"I'm just tired." Leia replied, staring stiffly ahead. It was one thing to admit to herself that she was extremely attracted to the Falleen; quite another to admit it to Aurora. _Especially_ after that smile Xizor had given the other woman.

"Okay." Aurora replied, but the way she was eyeing Leia spoke differently.

Howzmin stopped in front of a door. "This is your room. The Wookiee will be in the next suite and your bodyguard is two doors down."

Chewie growled a question to which Leia had to guess at the answer. She didn't want to let Howzmin know that she couldn't understand her own companion. "I'll be okay in here. If Xizor wanted to harm us, he could have done it before now. Go on. Wash that dye out, both of you." She said, including Aurora, who sniffed disdainfully at her pink colored arm. "We don't need it anymore. Meet me back here when you're done."

Chewie nodded and followed Howzmin to the next door.

"_Call_ if you need anything." Aurora said carefully. Her extra emphasis on the first word told Leia she didn't mean on the com.

"I'll try."

For a moment, a quick grin crossed Aurora's face. "Do or do not. There is no try."

"What?" Leia said bewildered.

"Never mind. Doesn't matter." Aurora turned and walked down the hall towards where Howzmin waited at yet another door.

Shaking her head, Leia opened her own door and stepped into the most palatial room she'd ever been in, and that included several palaces that she had visited.

Everything in the room was either white or black, and yet it didn't seem colorless. Perhaps because the two shades were so vibrantly contrasting.

She stepped into black carpet so thick she actually felt herself sink. The white leather couch was butter-soft to the touch and the bedding on the round, six-poster bed felt like actual silk.

Leia turned around and let out a silent whistle. Xizor certainly knew how to take care of his guests. Crossing the room, she opened a door and discovered a walk in closet, packed with clothing in all manner of fabrics and every shade of the rainbow. She saw silks, velvets, satins, and leather and every fabric in between. One nearly translucent dress that she pulled out was actually made from Loveti moth fiber, which made it ridiculously expensive.

"I could support the Alliance for a year on what it cost to fill this closet." She muttered.

Curious, she checked the tag on the moth fiber dress. To her delight it was her size. Letting it fall back into place, she fingered a slightly less gauzy shirt in a lovely shade of violet. It was her size too. In fact…she checked other articles of clothing hanging in the closet. They were _all_ her size. Frowning, Leia sat down on the side of the bed trying to figure out what that meant. Either Howzmin had done the fastest shopping trip in history while they were talking to Xizor or else these clothes were already here.

Of course, Xizor had known she was coming; it could just be a courteous gesture.

Still, those were _a lot_ of clothes in there….

"I'm too tired to figure this out right now." Leia decided, climbing to her feet. She'd get out of these stinky clothes, have a bath, and then try to figure it out.


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Luke knelt on the smooth deck of the _Falcon_ staring down into the service well where Lando was doing an impressive amount of swearing as he tried to fix whatever was wrong with the hyperdrive.

Somehow, Luke wasn't too surprised to find himself in this situation. In just seemed in keeping with his life right now that nothing was going right. They'd picked Artoo up, as planned, transferred the little droid over, and the X-wing was now clamped, hopefully securely, onto the ship's hull where it would be out of the way of the guns. But that was the end of their success. When Lando had attempted to make the transition to lightspeed, nothing had happened. Blaming it bitterly on Han, they had limped away to a nearby asteroid, and hidden the ship among the rocks while Lando frantically tried to figure out what was going on with the _Falcon_.

From the amount of swearing, things weren't going well.

"What's the problem?" Luke asked now.

"The _problem_," Lando spit back bitterly, "is that Han and Chewie have completely reset, rewired, and screwed up this whole ship! I'm looking at a serpent's nest of _wires_ where there is supposed to be a pop-out circuit board! The schematics don't apply to _anything_ here!"

"Can you fix it?"

"I'm _trying _to fix it!" Lando nearly yelled. "Pass me that jumper bypass."

Luke lay flat on his stomach to pass the tool down to Lando, who was creatively summing up Han's ancestry and personal habits in a decidedly profane manner.

Luke couldn't help grinning.

"Get Artoo to peek over the edge; maybe he knows what this blue wire is supposed to do." Lando called irritably.

In reply, Artoo rolled over to the lip of the service well and peered down. After a moment, he whistled and chirped something.

"Yeeowch!" Lando yelled.

"Probably you'd better not touch that one." Luke couldn't resist telling him.

Lando glared up at him. "Now you tell me. What about this yellow one?"

Artoo whistled again.

This was obviously going to take a while. Luke rolled over onto his back and contemplated the ceiling. He hoped the group of rocks they were currently hiding in would prove a big enough deterrent to keep Vader from searching for them. Hopefully he'd assume that they had made their escape and were already far away.

"Pass me those needle-head pliers." Lando called.

Luke complied. "You need me down there to help? I'm pretty good with tools."

"I used to own this ship." Lando nearly snarled. "I'll figure out a way around what Han has done to her. The man ought to be ashamed of himself."

"I'll mention that to him when we get him out of the carbonite." Luke replied.

"So will I. High, loud, and repeatedly."

_Page Break_

Aurora was only slightly surprised to find her door locked. She had pretty much expected it. Xizor didn't seem the type to allow his guests to go running around his palace unsupervised. She was, however, surprised a few minutes later when her door opened to reveal Chewie standing there. He was back to his usual brown and gray color, although the buzzcut remained the same. Behind him, she could see Howzmin standing in the hall.

Aurora picked up the plum-colored jacket she'd found hanging in the closet. It wasn't something that she would normally have worn, but there wasn't much to chose from. A few pairs of pants, several dresses and a small variety of shirts in different colors. She'd ended up in dark gray pants with a lighter gray silk tank and the jacket.

_At least it was better than what she had been wearing_, she thought, giving a contemptuous look to the too bright, too tight outfit she'd had on. Having her hair, skin and eyes back to their normal colors was a great deal better as well.

Shrugging into the jacket, she stepped past Chewie. "Okay, let's go."

They walked a few doors down and Howzmin wordlessly unlocked Leia's door.

Aurora opened the door and walked in, followed by Chewie.

"Give us a minute, would you?" She said smiling, and then took great delight in shutting the door in the bald man's face.

Turning around, the smile slipped off her face as she spotted Leia.

As expected, Leia too had taken advantage of the time to change clothes and bathe. Her long brown hair was shining and twisted up into some complicated knot at the back of her head and it looked like she had taken the time to apply a few cosmetics. Not really out of the ordinary. Leia liked to look nice, nothing wrong with that. It was her choice of clothing, however, that had Aurora concerned. The dress she was wearing was a filmy green color and nearly transparent. If Leia hadn't chosen to wear a dark bodysuit under it, she'd be seeing a great deal more of Leia than she had ever wanted to.

Chewie was eyeing Leia quizzically too.

"What?" The princess said defensively. "What are you staring at? I put on some clean clothes, that's all."

Chewie didn't say anything, and Aurora bit down on her tongue to keep her own comments to herself.

A hint of guilt crossed Leia's face, prompting an explanation. "Look, we need Xizor's help. There's no reason I can't look nice; maybe it'll throw him off guard."

Chewie raised an eyebrow and a flush touched the princess' cheeks. "Who is the diplomat here, anyway? I don't tell you how to fly, you don't tell me how to conduct an interview."

This time Chewie spoke, and for someone who didn't understand Shirwook, Leia seemed to get the gist of it pretty well. "It's none of your or Han's business how I dress!" She paced away. "We need information and to get it, we have to play the game."

"And just how far do you intend to play?" Aurora asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

Leia spun around, furious. "That was uncalled for!"

"Was it?" Her voice didn't rise, but there was an edge to it, that hadn't been there before. "I'm a little concerned here, Leia. First your behavior earlier with Xizor and now this?"

Hands fisted on her hips, Leia raised her brow, her diplomatic training coming to the fore. "And what, exactly, is 'this'? Because I'm wearing a dress and chose to look nice?" She raked her gaze over Aurora. "You might want to try it sometime."

Aurora's hand fisted at her side, but she didn't need Chewie's paw on her arm to reign in her temper. Leia was striking out because she was feeling defensive. She took a deep breath to make sure her voice was calm when she spoke "I'm just worried for you. I don't trust Xizor."

"Neither do I." Leia shot back, but her stance had become less defensive. "But we do need this information. We need to know who's trying to kill Luke."

Aurora sighed and ran her hand through her hair, admitting defeat. "Fine. Just…be careful. There's something about Xizor…"

_There certainly is!_ Leia clamped her lips shut on the thought. It wasn't what Aurora meant and it certainly wouldn't go over well. And Aurora was right. No matter how attractive she found Xizor, she couldn't forget that under it all he was a criminal.

"I'll be careful." She promised, and she meant it. Whatever had happened to her previously, she was over it. She was here to get information from Xizor in order to protect Luke and that was all she was here for.

She managed to keep her resolve all the way to Xizor's inner sanctum. Right up until the door opened and she got a good look at him. Blood rushed to her face immediately and it took everything she had not to stare.

Xizor had changed clothes too, and apparently he liked the same designer that she did, because the long, flowing red robe he wore was made from the same gauzy material…and he wasn't wearing anything under it.

From behind her, she heard a soft curse from Aurora.

"Do come in, Princess." Xizor said, smiling at her.

Leia tore her eyes away from his broad chest, grateful at least that after that initial gawking she'd managed to keep her eyes above his waist. _And wasn't that just a damn shame…_

Behind her, Chewie growled something that didn't sound at all friendly.

Xizor's smile dimmed. "Perhaps your friends would care to take this time to dine while we conduct our negotiations?"

It had to be Leia's imagination that heard a subtle innuendo on the last word. Either that or wishful thinking.

Chewie growled a decided negative.

Leia took a deep breath. She needed to get some control here. Obviously Xizor wanted to be alone with her to discuss the information he had. Refusing would only alienate him and possibly lose her want she wanted. Raising her chin, she said firmly. "Chewie, Aurora, wait outside."

The snarl this time was even more negative.

She turned to face Chewie, dropping her voice slightly. "Han would trust me here. You should too."

To her surprise, Aurora backed her up. "Come on, Chewie. Leia's right. We should trust her."

The Wookiee growled something at her, but Aurora simply put her hand on his arm and squeezed lightly. "I know. But now is not the time." A tilt of her head indicated Xizor standing there politely, watching the exchange with a slight smile. Seeing her attention, the Falleen prince widened his smile into something that was probably intended to be sexy, but in her opinion looked far more predatory than anything else. Especially against his now reddish skin.

She controlled the urge to shudder. Something was pressing against her mind and had been since the minute the door opened. She had a feeling it had something to do with Xizor himself. There was something about the change in the color of his skin that was significant, but she couldn't remember what. But as she said, now was not the time. Standing here now arguing was only amusing Xizor and embarrassing Leia.

From his not so subtle suggestion to leave them alone, it was obvious he wanted Leia to himself and had no intention of revealing anything until they were gone. And from the way Leia was reacting, she wasn't going to listen to anything they had to say against Xizor until he showed his hand.

Fine then. They'd play his game, just as Leia wanted, and let him hang himself. She could only hope that Leia knew what she was doing. And in the meantime, Aurora could monitor the emotions in the room. If Leia became angry or frightened, or anything else…well, they'd see how well Xizor's security door held up against a lightsaber.

"Let's go, Chewie. I'm starving." She said now, looking up at the Wookiee.

He obviously wasn't happy about it, but he trusted her to know what she was doing.

"I'll be fine." Leia assured them, but from the tone of her voice it was obvious she simply wanted them gone.

Aurora gave her one last searching look, then turned and left, brushing past Howzmin in the process. Chewie followed her, but when he brushed past the bald man, he nearly knocked him over. The door shut behind them silently.

_I hope you know what you're doing, Leia._


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

It was some time later that Luke rose to his feet. He'd been staring at the ceiling for what felt like hours and after counting all of the dubious stains and pondering their potential origins, when he'd found his thoughts unerringly reverting to Aurora, he decided it was time to find something to distract himself with. "I'm going to see what I can whip up in the galley. You want something?"

"Yeah, how about a beaker full of battery acid and bug poison."

Smiling, Luke headed for the galley, and then suddenly froze as a strange feeling crept over him. Coldness seemed to touch every fiber of his being.

"Master Luke? Are you all right?" Threepio asked.

Luke ignored him, focusing on the feeling. The Force was stirring, but the feeling was dark, yet still familiar somehow….

_Shavit!_

He moved back to the service well. "You'd better get it fixed fast, Lando."

"What's the hurry?" the other man asked impatiently.

"I think we're about to have company."

Lando's face suddenly appeared over the edge of the well. "What? No way anybody could find us in here."

"Yeah?" Luke asked, "Want to bet?"

"Oh, man. Don't even say what you're thinking."

Luke looked confused. "What?"

"Don't say, 'I've got a bad feeling about this.'"

Luke stared at him. "Do I really even have to?"

Lando's head disappeared. "I'm hurrying, I'm hurrying."

Luke headed aft to the cockpit to check the sensors, feeling his stomach clenching in dread. If it was who he thought it was, not even the clump of asteroids was going to keep Vader away.

_Page Break_

"I think that's got it." Lando announced, hoisting himself over the edge of the service well. The normally immaculate gambler was looking decidedly disheveled.

"You _think_?" Luke asked

"Won't know for sure until we engage the drive."

Luke's raised brow expressed his doubt at the wisdom of this decision, but Threepio's anxious voice interrupted any verbal comment he would have made.

"Master Luke. Master Luke!"

"What is it, Threepio?" Luke asked the frantic droid.

"The sensors indicate that a ship is approaching! A very large vessel! An enormous ship!"

The two men exchanged a glance. "I wonder who that could be." Lando said sarcastically.

"I hope you fixed the drive." Luke told him. "Otherwise I think we're going to find out."

He followed Lando to the cockpit, trying to ignore the cold touch of the Dark Side that seemed to be almost reaching out for him. Yes, he knew exactly who was on that enormous ship approaching them. The question was, could Vader feel him as well?

_Page Break_

Aurora repressed a sigh and shifted her position slightly, letting her weight rest more fully on her left leg. Across from her, Howzmin smirked. She ignored him, her eyes on Chewie who had been pacing the corridor aimlessly for the last fifteen minutes.

From time to time, the big Wookiee would pause and lean back against the wall, but it would only last a few minutes and then he would be back to pacing.

Aurora appeared to be watching him, but most of her attention since they'd been standing here was actually turned inward.

After being summarily shown the door, she and Chewie had hurriedly eaten the meal served them. Neither had said anything, but it was clear that they were both uncomfortable leaving Leia alone with Xizor and wanted to at least be within hailing distance of the room she occupied. In less than half an hour, they were back in the corridor outside Xizor's room; watched carefully by the ever present Howzmin.

Aurora had spent the first few minutes searching carefully with the Force for Leia's familiar presence. It hadn't taken long; maybe it was her intense and forceful personality, but Leia stood out strongly in the Force, her emotions coming through faintly but clearly.

Which was why, after only a few minutes, Aurora began to feel uneasy. What she was picking up from Leia felt wrong. Her emotions were all over the place; desire, confusion, lust, guilt, glee…

It felt wrong; imposed somehow.

Suddenly the emotion coming through was loud and clear and Aurora jerked away from the wall with a start.

"Chewie! Get us in there, now!"

The Wookiee responded with a howl of glee and turned towards the door.

Howzmin looked startled. "Now, wait just a damn minute-"

But Chewie didn't hesitate to backhand him out of the way.

The squat, bald man collapsed on the floor without a sound as Chewie began pounding on the door, yelling furiously.

After a long moment, it slid back, revealing Leia. A flushed, bright-eyed and disheveled Leia. Aurora felt her heart sank. Had they waited too long?

"What is going on?" The princess demanded, obviously not happy.

Chewie howled, demanding that she come with them right now.

Leia glanced back over her shoulder, self-consciously. "I'm in the middle of – of a, a…delicate discussion here. Can't it wait?"

Chewie's negative response was perfectly clear.

Leia glanced over her shoulder again, towards Xizor, who was just visible seated on the couch. Aurora was relieved to see he still seemed to be dressed…if you wanted to call it that.

"He seems upset." Leia told him. "Maybe I better go and see what he wants?"

The fact that she made it a question infuriated Aurora, but she bit her tongue.

"As you like." Came Xizor's indifferent response. "I'll be here…for a little while longer."

Leia looked crushed at the thought and hesitated in the doorway. "I- I will-" She shook her head dazedly.

Behind her, Xizor smiled lazily and waved her away as if he couldn't care less. But Aurora saw the hint of triumph and malice in that smile and it was all she could do not to yank Leia out of the door and away from the danger.

Fortunately, she didn't need to, as Leia stepped out into the hallway herself, chin up and anger seething in every line of her body. "This had better be good!"

She glanced at the unconscious Howzmin and her lips parted, obviously to deliver a stinging diatribe, but Chewie cut her off, grabbing her arm and dragging her down the corridor

"Let go of me, you overgrown stuffed toy!" She hissed, pulling against his grip.

But Chewie ignored her, continuing to drag her until they reached a small alcove a short distance away. He shoved Leia into it and then stepped in behind her, Aurora at his heels.

Leia spun around, dignity forgotten. "You are going to be sorry, you-"

A furry paw clamped over her mouth, shutting her up, and Aurora nearly snorted at the look on Leia's face.

With his free hand, Chewie pointed up at the ceiling.

Both Leia and Aurora looked up. Just barely visible was a small parabolic microphone set into the ceiling.

He looked significantly at Leia and then removed his paw.

"Somebody is listening?" the Princess whispered, all traces of animosity gone.

Chewie nodded.

"Are we being watched too?"

A negative shake of the big, shaggy head.

Realization dawned for Aurora. "_That's_ what you were doing. You weren't pacing; you were mapping out the security cameras and calculating a blind spot!" She looked at Chewie with admiration. "You clever walking carpet, you."

The Wookie looked as modest as he was capable of.

Leia, on the other hand, looked shell shocked. Even as they watched, a variety of emotions played over her face; everything from shock to anger to guilt, culminating in a great deal of shame.

"Xizor has been spying on us the whole time, and I-" She broke off, her hands over her face. "How could I have done that? I've never done anything like that in my life. I just let him – it was as if I couldn't control myself!"

Aurora touched her shoulder tentatively, uncomfortable with trying to give any kind of comfort. "I don't think you literally could. I was monitoring your emotions and they were all over the place. It wasn't natural."

Leia dropped her hands from her face. "You mean like a drug?"

"Possibly. Something very similar in any case." Aurora considered her. Leia's color was still high and she wouldn't meet their eyes. "It wasn't your fault." She said very deliberately. "You physically couldn't have stopped yourself."

Leia glanced up. "Apparently not." She said wryly. She took a deep breath and gave a slight shake to her shoulders. "Regardless, it's done. Now we have to figure out what to do next. Somehow I don't think Xizor is going to give us the information about who's after Luke."

"I don't think he has to." Aurora said slowly.

Both Chewie and Leia looked at her in surprise.

"Xizor knew about the attempts to kill him, remember?" She told them. "How did he know that?"

"You think Black Sun is behind the attempts?" Leia asked.

"I've told you all along that it wasn't the Empire trying to kill Luke." Aurora said impatiently. "Vader tried to recruit him; the last thing he wants is Luke dead. Trust me on this. It's not the Empire. Xizor, on the other hand, might have reason to want him dead."

Chewie harred a question.

"I don't know. Maybe the attempts were fake; meant merely to have us seek Black Sun's help so that they could get in good with the Alliance. Maybe they just want to get rid of a potential Jedi, I really don't know. But Xizor knows something about what's going on. I can feel it."

"The clothes." Leia murmured. At the questioning glances from the other two, she elaborated. "My closet is full of thousands of credits worth of clothing; all in my size. Xizor planned on my coming here and from the amount of clothing, staying for some time."

"I don't like this." Aurora muttered, frowning. "We need to get out of here."

Chewie howled his agreement, but Leia was looking thoughtful. "I think maybe we need to consider an alternate plan. Chewie, here's what you should do…"


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

The _Millennium Falcon_ shot out of the asteroid field like a spooked mynock and climbed hard for space, preparing to make the jump to lightspeed.

Luke glanced at the sensors. "We have TIEs coming in. I make it about three dozen of them. Any time, Lando."

"Here goes." Lando said. "If you believe in luck, wish for the good version." He wrapped his hand around the hyperdrive levers, engaged the drive and –

Nothing happened.

Lando swore. Repeatedly and loudly, including both Han and the ship and suggesting several colorful, but highly unlikely things that the ship could do to itself.

Luke started to rise. "I'd better get to the guns." He said grimly.

"No, wait-"

"We don't have _time_ to wait; in ten seconds we're going to be swarmed with TIEs."

Lando touched another control, made a series of adjustments. "Now!"

The _Falcon_ jumped and the forward viewport blazed with the familiar lines of hyperspace.

"Ha-hah!" Lando crowed triumphantly.

Luke, who had been halfway out of his seat in preparation to rising, was thrown back into it, hard. He hardly noticed. "You cut that awful close."

The gambler shrugged. "Hey, you wanted a boring life, you should have stayed on Tatooine." A smug smile creased his mouth under the neat mustache. "I knew I could fix it."

Luke had to fight the smile that was threatening to cross his own face. It seemed like they always had to do everything the hard way. But what did it matter? They were safe, for now, and already light years away from Vader and the dank touch of the Dark Side.

"Now, if some other special Solo modification doesn't put us into the middle of a star, our next stop should be Tatooine. As soon as Leia and company are finished with her business, we can get back to rescuing Han."

"Fine by me," Luke told him. "Haven't they finished yet?"

Lando shrugged nonchalantly, but he wouldn't quite meet Luke's eyes. "They had to take a slight detour."

A frown crossed Luke's face. He had the distinct feeling that Lando didn't want to tell him what Leia and Aurora were up to.

Fine. He'd go get that meal he'd never gotten around to in order to put Lando at ease. Then he'd spring the interrogation on him.

On the way to the galley, he passed Artoo and Threepio huddled together in the lounge.

He paused to consider them. Something about the way they were standing made him uneasy.

"Something up?"

"Artoo is a bit worried about Princess Leia and Mistress Aurora." Threepio volunteered. "I told him that they are both quite resourceful. I'm sure that they are all right."

Luke nodded absently, continuing on his walk, but his thoughts weren't on food anymore. The droids' conversation had made him aware of a strange feeling niggling at the back of his mind, and all at once he was absolutely certain that wherever Leia was, she was in great danger.

He froze, concentrating on it, but he couldn't get anything more. Just that sense of danger. He tried focusing on Aurora, but didn't even get that much. Whatever was going on, it seemed to involve Leia only.

He made an abrupt about face and headed for the cockpit. Time for that interrogation.

Lando looked up and at the sight of Luke's face, his own closed up.

"Sorry, buddy, but I'm not supposed to tell you."

"What?"

"The princess wants you on Tatooine, and she said when you asked, to tell you she took care of herself before she met you and she can take care of herself now. And I won't even repeat what Aurora said."

Luke just glared at him.

"Besides, they've got Chewie with them. He won't let anything happen to them, you know that."

"Yeah, maybe."

"Look, they'll probably get to Tatooine before we do. And Leia's in charge, remember?"

Luke nodded, but he didn't like it. Something felt wrong.

_Page Break_

Leia took a deep breath and opened the door to Xizor's chamber. The handsome alien still sat on the couch where she had left him, sipping quietly at his glass of green champagne. At her approach, he allowed a small smile to grace his face. "I was beginning to worry about you."

Leia pasted a smile of her own on, hoping it looked real. Whatever had caused her previous unthinking attraction was still there; she could feel it pressing against her skin, but now that she was aware of it, she could resist it. Maybe the drug was wearing off. Regardless, she needed to maintain the façade for long enough to give Chewie a chance to escape.

She just hoped he actually went through with it. Neither he nor Aurora had liked the plan she had concocted at all. It had only been her assertion that they needed to warn Luke and make sure that he stayed as far away from Coruscant as possible that had led to Chewie reluctantly agreeing. Aurora, on the other hand, had continued to argue with her. She'd kept insisting that Luke wouldn't listen to reason and would come after them. She'd seemed almost panicked at the idea. But really, Luke knew where his duty lay. He'd listen to Chewie and, certainly, he'd help organize a rescue, but he himself would stay very far away. In the end, Leia had simply ignored Aurora's protests and arranged an escape plan with Chewie to the best of their ability. She knew Chewie hadn't liked that Aurora was so adamantly against it, but his loyalty to the promise he had given Han to keep her safe had won out. And, as reluctant as Aurora had been to agree with the plan, she had still flat out refused to leave Leia there alone; something that Leia couldn't help feeling a little grateful for.

Xizor's voice drew her attention back to him. "Come back and sit next to me." It was definitely not a request and Leia had to fight not to let her disgust show on her face. He was so absolutely sure of her. He didn't even seem curious as to what Chewie had wanted to speak to her so badly about.

Partly to delay further and partly because his self-assurance irritated her, Leia moved toward the bar instead of the couch. "Let me make myself some tea first." She smiled at him. "I seem to have gotten rather warm and thirsty."

Xizor's face wasn't too hard to read; irritated that she didn't immediately obey him, but pleased that she was obviously affected by him. Leia took a sip of her tea, trying to hide her distaste for the creature.

"Come here." Xizor commanded.

Unable to think of a way to avoid the direct order, Leia sat her tea down and approached the couch.

Xizor smiled again, obviously reveling in his control of her. "You said you were warm. Why don't you…remove your clothes and get more comfortable?"

She supposed, considering what had happened before Chewie interrupted them, it wasn't too out of line, if rather crass. But knowing now that he had been physically compelling her response, she felt her skin crawl in reaction. But it didn't show on her face. Instead she simply walked slowly, frowning slightly. "I've gotten a little cooler."

"Take them off anyway." Xizor didn't bother to hide the durasteel in his tone. "It would please me. You want to please me, don't you?"

Leia couldn't quite bring herself to answer in the affirmative when the truth was actually a big fat no. Instead, she stopped moving towards him and lifted one foot, pulling off the lightweight slipper she was wearing. Smiling falsely at Xizor, she tossed it behind her. Then lifted the other foot and repeated her action.

Xizor smiled back at her, pleased. He leaned back and sipped at the champagne again, as if enjoying the show.

She reached up and tugged at the zipper at the back of her dress. She had no problem removing it. After all, she was wearing a body suit under it, and it was transparent anyway. Removing it wouldn't give Xizor a glimpse of anything he hadn't already seen. But she needed to stall for more time, so she pretended to tug at the zipper, frowning as she wiggled it.

"What are you doing?"

"It's stuck." She answered, still pretending to work at the zipper.

"Come here. I'll do it."

"Wait. There it is." She tugged the fastener down and pulled the dress off slowly, hoping Xizor thought she was attempting to be seductive. It seemed to be working, because Xizor had leaned back on the couch again, smiling at her.

The green dress puddled to the floor around her feet.

"Now the rest." The head of Black Sun told her, waving his glass casually at her bodysuit.

She certainly hoped Chewie moved fast, because that was all she was prepared to remove. "I don't think so."

Xizor looked as if he hadn't heard her correctly. "What?"

Leia's sense of humor came to the fore and it was all she could to do not to laugh at the look of incredulity of his face. "It isn't proper to remove one's clothes in front of a stranger." She replied primly, channeling one of the aunt's that had made her girlhood hell back on Alderaan.

Xizor goggled at her for a moment before surging to his feet and grabbing her by the shoulders. He shook her fiercely, and suddenly Leia could feel a wave of allure sweep over her without actually affecting her. It wasn't a drug in her tea, that overpowering feeling of attraction, it was _him_! Something that he was giving off, like a perfume. It was much stronger, as if he was emitting more of it, but now that Leia knew it was enforced, she had no problem ignoring the attraction. She would not be at the mercy of her hormones, damn it.

Xizor bent his head, intending to force a kiss on her and Leia had finally had enough.

Irritated beyond reason, she slammed her knee up between his legs as hard as she could.

A feeling of fierce satisfaction swept over her as she watched him bend double, both hands cupped over his groin. Even if he killed her for it, that had been entirely worth it.

After several long moments, he straightened slightly. Any trace of emotion was wiped from his face. Even his skin tone seemed to have changed, fading back into that cool, pale green it had been when she first saw him.

"So, you resist me." He said coolly.

"You got that right." She shot back.

"It was something the Wookiee said." He stated. "Or perhaps your tame Jedi?"

Leia smiled sweetly. "Sometimes Wookiees are very smart. And always very loyal." She ignored his question about Aurora.

The Falleen prince shook his head. "Ah, here is the drawback to bright and strong women: Sometimes they are bright and strong when you least want them to be." His head inclined in a slight bow. "I am pleased that you are a worthy adversary. Guri."

At the last word, a panel in the wall behind him slid back and the blonde droid stepped out.

Leia nodded at her in recognition, one opponent to another. Guri didn't respond; her attention was on her master.

"It seems you were right." Xizor told her. "Take her to her room and lock her in. Make sure her companions are similarly confined." To Leia he continued. "You and I will continue this discussion later. Sooner or later, I believe you'll find that I am not such bad company."

"Don't bet on it." Leia told him.

Guri moved over to her and clamped one hand down on her arm in a gentle yet clearly unbreakable grasp.

_Chewie, I hope you had enough time, because it looks like I'm out of it, _Leia thought as she was led out of the room.


	25. Chapter 25

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Luke's insistence had finally gotten Lando to agree to drop out of hyperspace for a brief moment.

"Look, I trust the Force and it's telling me Leia is in danger. So let's just put in a call and check, okay?"

"Can't it wait until we get to Tatooine?"

"No." Luke's voice was final.

Lando sighed. "All right. But you remember I did this. You owe me one."

"How do we call?"

"I've got a little surprise for you." Lando said, smiling devilishly. "Han isn't the only one who can rig the _Falcon_."

Luke raised an eyebrow and Lando showed him a comm. unit mounted to one wall.

"Go ahead, make your call."

Luke punched in the relay codes that Lando read off to him then waited.

Dash didn't answer, but the there was a message waiting.

The image that appeared once they entered the play code surprised them both. It wasn't Dash at all, but a Wookiee with a really bad haircut who was yelling frantically.

Luke and Lando both listened with dismay. Luke wasn't completely fluent in Shriwook, but he was getting enough to understand the general message. Leia and Aurora were being held on Coruscant by Black Sun. Chewie had managed to escape, at Leia's insistence, but she refused to go and Aurora wouldn't leave her alone. He felt the muscles in his stomach tighten. Bad enough that Leia was in danger, but he damn well knew that Aurora would consider it her duty to put herself between Leia and whatever threatened her, which would put Aurora in even more danger.

Abruptly the image went blank.

"Somebody must have reported the override's theft." Lando said, pulling the electronic card from the comm. unit.

"Let's go." Luke responded, his thoughts already racing ahead to plan the necessary steps.

"To Tatooine, right?" Lando asked, but his tone revealed he knew it was forlorn hope.

"Wrong."

"Somehow I knew you were gonna say that. We can't go to Coruscant! It's too dangerous. Especially for you!"

"You can stay here if you want to." Luke told him.

Lando stared at him incredulously for a moment. "Leia specifically said you were not to go to Coruscant and Aurora was even more emphatic. You want me to ignore both of them? Do I look like I have a death wish?"

"Leia and Aurora need my help. I'm going." Was all Luke said.

Lando stared forlornly up at the ceiling and then shook his head. "Why me? Why do these things always happen to me?" He sighed and headed for the cockpit, muttering under his breath about the dangers of disregarding the specific orders of women, especially armed ones.

_Page Break_

Aurora paced restlessly back and forth on the thick carpet of her room. She knew she was probably being watched on the cameras hidden about the room, but frankly at this point, she didn't care. She was more concerned with this plan Leia had concocted and all the things that could go wrong with it; starting with Xizor killing Leia where she stood when he realized she wasn't under the influence of whatever drug he had subjected her to or Chewie being shot when he tried to escape the immense building they were in.

But what was worrying her most was that she knew damn well when Luke found out that Xizor was holding them captive he'd head for Coruscant just as fast as he could. And Coruscant was the absolute last place she wanted him.

She'd tried to tell Leia that, but Leia was convinced that Luke would listen to Chewie and Lando and not risk himself trying to reach them. That he'd listen to the orders she had given. But what Leia didn't seem to realize was that Luke had come very far from that naïve young farmboy who would simply obey orders. He would no more ignore the danger they were in than he would consider giving up saving Han.

No, Luke would come for them; of that she'd had no doubt. And in doing so, he'd risk far worse than death. Because she had no doubt that Vader would know the instance Luke approached Coruscant, and he'd be waiting for him.

She collapsed on the bed, digging her fingers into her temples, trying to think past the panic that was filling her. But thoughts of the danger that Luke was walking into were consuming her: Vader wanted him turned; the Emperor wanted him captured, and Xizor just seemed to want him dead.

A possibility suddenly occurred to her and she stilled, working it through in her mind. Luke was listed on the Most Wanted list as strictly alive only. Yet Xizor had tried several times to have him killed. That couldn't possibly go over well with either the Emperor or Vader, both of whom wanted him alive and were used to being obeyed. Could she use this?

If Vader had been telling the truth, and he actually _was _Anakin Skywalker, would he be willing to protect his son from the head of Black Sun? She seemed to recall hearing somewhere once that Vader didn't care for Black Sun at all. Maybe she could use that.

She sank back into the softness of the bed, mulling the possibilities over in her head, and trying to develop some sort of plan.

_Page Break_

"I really don't think this is a good idea, Master Luke." Threepio wailed. "I believe it would be much better if Artoo and I went with you and Master Lando."

Artoo cheeped an emphatic agreement.

"Look, you'll be fine here on the ship." Luke told them. "We need you here in case we need help. Besides, it'll be a lot more dangerous out there than in here."

"Ah." The golden droid nodded. "Well, in that case, perhaps we _should_ stay here."

Artoo blatted in refusal.

"No, you heard Master Luke, he needs us on the ship in case anything goes wrong."

"Wrong? What could possibly go _wrong_?" Lando asked as he came into the hold, wrapping himself in a torn and ragged cloak. "Just because we've got huge rewards posted everywhere in the galaxy for us, dead or alive, and we've plunked ourselves down smack in the black and evil _heart _of the Empire?"

Luke grinned. "Come on. Where would be the last place you'd look for us if you were an Imperial operative or a bounty hunter?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right. They'd figure nobody would be that stupid. Lucky for us they don't know we _are_ that stupid." Lando agreed.

Luke smiled at the quip, but the plain truth was, what they were doing _was_ stupidly dangerous. More so than even Lando realized, because it was entirely possible that just his presence on Coruscant was enough to alert Vader. He'd been carefully monitoring the Force ever since they had snuck onto the planet by hiding in the shadow of a robotic freighter, but so far there hadn't been any trace of that cold, dark feeling he'd begun to recognize as the Dark Side.

Turning back to Threepio, he let the smile fall from his face. "Look, I'll be honest. There's a good chance we won't make it back. If that happens, don't call the Alliance for help. There's no point in putting any part of the fleet in jeopardy."

Threepio looked as dismayed as a droid could, but he simply said, "I understand."

Artoo, however, wasn't going to be nearly as complacent. He whistled and beeped urgently.

Luke squatted down next to him, resting his hand on the smooth dome. "Just stand by the comm., okay? We'll call you if we need you. If we get in trouble, you can try to come and get us. Threepio has the hands and feet, you have the astronavigational skills. I'm sure the two of you working together can fly the _Falcon_ in an emergency."

"There's a happy thought." Lando snorted. "Han knew that, it would thaw him out faster than a laser torch."

Artoo didn't seem very confident with the idea of them flying the _Falcon_ either.

"Don't be rude." Threepio told him. "I wasn't always a protocol droid, you know. I've programmed converters, and I once ran a shovel loader for an entire standard month. I've watched Master Han and Master Lando and Chewbacca often enough. I daresay I can pilot this ship better than _you_ can!"

Artoo made another rude noise.

"Oh, really? Well, at least _I_ don't look like an overgrown garbage can!"

Lando shook his head and looked at Luke. "Han is going to kill you when he finds out." Then he sighed. "But you'll be in good company 'cause Aurora and Leia are going to kill _me_." He sighed again. "Come on. If we're going to go, we need to get moving. We can get ourselves some disguises, and if we hurry, we can be underground before daylight."

"Okay." Luke rose. "See you in a little while." He told the two droids.

"Do be careful, Master Luke." Threepio said anxiously.

Artoo whistled his agreement.

Luke nodded. "We will."

He followed Lando down the ramp, wrapping a ragged scarf around his face. That, along with a tattered robe which covered his regular clothes, would have to serve to conceal his identify until they could find something better.

He and Lando left the abandoned building that sheltered the _Falcon_ and headed down the street. There weren't many people around. They were in the Southern hemisphere, pretty near to the pole, and it was cold. Apparently there were better places to hang out in on the planet sized city. Luke glanced back at the abandoned warehouse that concealed the ship. An acquaintance of Lando's had allowed them to hide the _Falcon _there in return for a favor that he owed Lando.

"Just how many people owe you favors?" Luke asked him curiously.

White teeth flashed in the shadow of the cowl Lando wore. "A whole lot of them who should never gamble. Lucky for me they do."

"So now what?"

"We catch a ride into the Southern Underground. Keep that lightsaber out of sight, but close at hand – this is not the kind of place you want to take your granny for tea, if you know what I mean."

"Bad as Mos Eisley?"

"Parts of it are worse."

"Great."

Some time later, Luke found himself struggling into the armor of an elite Stormtrooper. He and Lando had lured two of them into the 'fresher where they had then proceeded to divest them of their armor. He stared at himself in the mirror, memories of their frantic escape from the Death Star playing through his mind. "You know, I really hoped I'd never have to wear one of these again."

Behind him Lando emerged from the stall where he had tucked one of the troopers. He adjusted his belt and brushed imaginary lint from his sleeve. "Women love a man in uniform."

"Maybe that will keep Aurora and Leia from killing you." Luke replied.

Lando paled slightly at the reminder. "If I thought that was possible, I'd fight Vader for his."

"You think they're more dangerous than Vader?"

"Don't you?"

Luke considered it. "Good point. Come on."

They squared their shoulders, stuck their chests out and affected an Imperial swagger as they exited the 'fresher


	26. Chapter 26

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Somewhere in there she must have fallen asleep, because the next thing Aurora knew, her door was opening and Guri was entering, carrying a covered tray that obviously contained dinner.

Aurora sat up, rubbing her eyes. She hadn't meant to fall asleep, but obviously she had been more tired than she realized.

"What time is it?" She asked the HRD, rising from the bed.

Guri told her, causing Aurora to raise her brows. She'd slept for considerably longer than she had expected. Chewie must be well away by now. If they'd caught him or killed him, surely someone would have come to brag about it.

The droid set the tray down on the table and lifted the cover. Aurora inspected the food without much interest. Her mind was too full of other things to be overly concerned with the elegance of the menu.

She was aware, however, of Guri watching her closely as she approached the table, and she stopped several feet away.

"Can I help you with something?"

"You are a Jedi Knight." It was a statement rather than a question, but Aurora could hear the doubt behind the words.

"I'm training to be a Jedi Knight." She qualified.

Guri looked thoughtful. "My master pits himself against the deadliest opponents he can find, to test himself. In this way, he establishes his superiority over others. I am unique; the only one of my kind. There is no being or mechanical who is my equal in hand-to-hand combat. Except perhaps, if the stories are true, a Jedi Knight."

Aurora felt herself tense, her body automatically shifting into a defensive stance. From what she had seen of Guri in the casino suite, she was incredibly strong and probably just as fast. If this came down to a fight, she wasn't sure even the Force was going to be enough help. "A test? You want to test yourself against me in combat?"

Guri nodded. "Yes. I would like this very much. How am I to know that I am the best I can be if I do not try myself against a worthy opponent?"

Aurora kept her eyes on the droid, watching her for the slightest movement as the droid continued speaking.

"Unfortunately, at this time my master has other plans for you and I am not able to indulge myself. Perhaps later."

"Perhaps." Aurora said, gratified to hear that her voice was calm, despite her racing heart. She really didn't want to get into a fight with the droid. She wasn't sure she'd make it out alive.

"When you have finished your meal, my master wishes to speak with you." Guri said now, her voice once more impersonal.

"Of course." Aurora sat down at the table, trying to ignore the adrenalin that was still rushing through her body. She'd been about two seconds away from what probably would have been one brutal fight. But she needed to ignore that now and focus on Xizor. He wanted to speak to her about something, and she needed to have all her wits about her for the interview.

Once she had finished the meal, tasting little of it, Guri led her out of the room and down several corridors, taking several turns and heading up two flights of stairs. She might have been trying to confuse her companion, but Aurora was using the Force to augment her memory and was memorizing every twist and turn. When they arrived in front of an elaborately carved double door, she could have traced her way back to her room with her eyes closed.

Guri knocked once and opened the door, revealing Xizor standing in front of an expansive window seemingly admiring the view. He turned at their entrance.

"Ah, Commander. Please, come in." He nodded to Guri who stepped back out and closed the door behind her.

Aurora took several steps forward. She was relieved to see that Xizor had changed clothing and was wearing an elaborately embroidered jacket over slim pants. The see-through robe was nowhere in sight, which she hoped meant he wasn't going to try the seduction technique he'd used on Leia.

He gestured at the leather couch in front of her. "Please, have a seat. May I get you a drink?"

"No, thank you." She replied, sitting down. She didn't trust him, but it appeared that for now, at least, he was going to maintain a façade of manners.

Xizor poured himself a drink and then seated himself on the couch near her. He smiled graciously at her. "I must admit, Commander, that you present something of a dilemma for me. When I made my plans, I hadn't anticipated your presence here."

Aurora smiled back at him. "I'd apologize, but we both know I'd be lying."

He laughed. "How direct. It's quite refreshing." He sipped at his drink and contemplated her again. "You see, the problem is that I'm not quite certain what to do with you. Princess Leia is necessary for what I have in mind, but you…you are a puzzle."

Aurora kept the pleasant smile on her face.

"On the one hand," Xizor tapped one finger against his chin, "there _are_ all those rumors about your relationship with Skywalker. I imagine that if word got out that I was holding you, he'd drop everything and come rushing to your rescue. Tell me, are you lovers?"

She raised one eyebrow. "What do you think?"

He let his eyes sweep over her from head to toe. "I think that if you are not, then Skywalker is more of a fool than I believe him to be."

She shrugged noncommittally. "Perhaps."

"Hmmm. But on the other hand, from what I have heard of him, he'll come rushing to the Princess' rescue regardless. Which makes you simply…surplus."

Aurora felt a chill run up her spine, but didn't let it show on her face.

"Then again, the Emperor is _quite_ interested in you. I imagine that he would be most displeased if I were to simply dispose of you. And for now, at least, I find it necessary to stay in the Emperor's good graces." Another sip of the amber colored liquid in his glass. "However, no one knows for certain that I even have you here, so if I were to kill you, it would be quite a simple matter. And from what I've heard, my dear, you are rather dangerous to keep." He held the glass up, admiring the play of light through the liquor. "You see, quite the dilemma."

The door opened again, and Guri stepped through. "Forgive me, Highness. You asked me to remind you of that link call you needed to make."

Xizor turned his head lazily. "Ah, yes. Thank you, Guri." He turned back to Aurora. "You'll excuse me, I hope, Commander, for one moment."

Aurora inclined her head. "Of course."

Xizor rose and crossed to the desk, tapped a few keys and then waited. After a moment, a muffled voice answered and Xizor spoke into the link. "Prince Xizor for Lord Vader."

The muffled voice spoke again, explaining something.

"Ah, yes. If he has just returned to Imperial Center, I imagine he is busy. I will call at another time when it is more convenient. Convey my regards."

The link shut down and Xizor smiled into the distance. "So, the reports were correct." He said softly, speaking to himself. After a moment, he seemed to recollect her presence and turned towards the couch where she was sitting.

"My apologies, Commander, but I'm afraid we'll have to continue this delightful discussion some other time. There are things that I need to take care of at this time. I hope you'll understand." He smiled again in what he obviously intended to be a charming manner.

But Aurora was barely paying attention. She was mulling over what she had just overheard of the link conversation and continued to consider it as Guri once again escorted her back to her room.

So, Xizor had Vader's personal link number….a plan began to form in her head. A desperate, horribly risky plan, but a plan nonetheless, which was more than she had had before.

Luke would hate it. No question of that. He'd be outraged and hurt and absolutely furious with her, if she did this. But if it kept him alive, wouldn't it be worth it?

Aurora lay back on the bed, her eyes unfocused as she ran over the plan in her head. It would have to absolutely flawless with no room for mistakes or it would backfire in her face.

_Page Break_

"Well, at least the neighborhood is an improvement." Luke commented, looking around at the market square they were standing in.

"Don't say I never take you anywhere." Lando told him.

"Where exactly are we going?"

"There." Lando said, pointing.

"A _plant_ shop?"

"Don't let it fool you. It's run by an old Ho'Din name of Spero. He's got a lot of connections, some Imperial, some Alliance, some criminal."

"Let me guess; he owes you a favor."

"Not exactly. But we've done some business in the past and he doesn't mind making a few credits passing along information."

The two crossed the street, heading for the shop.

"We're getting a lot of dirty looks." Luke noted.

"It's the uniforms. The Empire doesn't have many friends down here. Most of the locals are probably on the run, one step ahead of being arrested. They won't bother us as long as we don't stick our noses in the wrong place. Don't want to bring Imperial heat and light into their hideout."

"Let's try to avoid that."

"That's my plan."

They entered the shop and looked around, but there was no one in sight.

"Nobody home." Luke said. "That's odd, isn't it?"

"Yeah, odd. I-"

There was a voice behind them. A growling, threatening voice speaking Shirwook.

"Easy, friend." Lando said, slowly lifting his hands away from his body. "Nobody is going to make any sudden moves."

Luke followed his movement, frowning. There was something about that voice…

The speaker growled again.

"We are turning." Lando said. "Nice and slow."

They turned.

"Chewie!" Lando exclaimed, dropping his hands.

Chewie evidently recognized them, despite the helmets, because he lowered the blaster pistol he was holding, in order to embrace them.

"What happened? Why is your hair chopped off?"

Chewie growled and harned out a long explanation.

"Okay, so Spero's tied up in the back so nobody thinks he's helping. Fine. But what about-"

The Wookiee expressed his annoyance at Lando's interruption and kept going.

"So Leia thinks it's Black Sun that wants Luke dead, not the Empire?" Lando asked. "They're behind the assassination attempts?"

Chewie nodded.

"Well, Aurora said all along that the Empire only wanted you alive." Lando told Luke.

"Yeah, but what did I do to make Prince Xizor so mad?"

Chewie growled again.

"Huh?" Lando asked in disbelief. "But there's just the three of us; how can we get inside that place? It won't help them if we get caught, will it-?"

A blaster bolt blasting through the open door cut him off in mid-sentence. It hit a hanging flowerpot, showering Luke with broken pottery and dirt.

"What the –"

Outside the shop, four men armed with blasters were visible. A handful of shots came through the door.

Chewie raised his blaster and fired off several rounds from where he had dropped to the floor.

"Why are these guys shooting at us?" Luke asked, crouching behind a counter. "Do they owe you a favor too?"

Lando gave him a dirty look before returning fire. "I have no idea who they are. They're probably shooting at the uniforms."

"Is there a back way out of here?" Luke asked Chewie.

The Wookiee nodded and waved one hairy arm towards the rear of the shop. They crawled across the littered floor, keeping their heads down and away from the blaster fire that continued to sear through the air above them. On the way, they passed an old Ho'Din bound and gagged in the corner. Lando paused to tip him over on his side so that he was out of the way of the blaster fire. "Sorry about this. Send the Alliance a bill; they'll pay for it!"

Chewie reached the back entrance first and shoved the door open. Almost immediately a dozen blaster shots slammed through the partially open door and into the wall behind it.

Luke ducked reflexively. "They've got us boxed!"

Lando swore.

Suddenly there was a scream from outside, followed by several more shots, although nothing entered the shop.

"What the-" Lando exclaimed.

Luke raised his head cautiously, trying to see over the countertop. There was someone walking across the street towards them. Well, not so much walking really, as swaggering.

He sighed. "It's Rendar."

Lando groaned and rolled over onto his back, careless of the dirt and debris that was staining the white armor. "Oh, man."

"Howdy, boys. Having a little trouble?" Dash said grinning as he came in the store and saw them lying on the floor.

"What are you doing here, Rendar?" Lando asked sourly.

"Saving your butts." Dash told him. He glanced at Luke and the grin widened. "Again."

Luke managed not to scowl at him, but it was close.

The older man waved at them. "Come on, we can talk as we move. Follow me."

Reluctantly they stood up, brushing off the dirt that covered them and followed Dash out the door.

"Where are we going?" Luke asked Dash as they traveled through more dark streets and alleys, winding their way through crowds of desperate looking beings.

"I know a place we can hide. We can figure out how to rescue your girlfriends from there."

He would have responded with an equally snide remark in kind, but suddenly in mid step, Luke felt a rush of something fill him, like suddenly stepping full body into a warm pool. A powerful knowledge suddenly consumed him and he couldn't stop the grin that split his face. Without even trying, he was suddenly one with the Force. It was just there, effortlessly.

"What?" Lando asked him, noticing the smile.

"Nothing. We'll go to this place that Dash knows and we'll figure out how to rescue Aurora and Leia." It came out as more of a command than a suggestion, and Luke winced internally, waiting for someone to say something sarcastic, to ask who had died and left Luke in charge, but the other three exchanged a significant glance and then glanced back at Luke and didn't say a word. Something had changed.

The placed they ended up in was a pit, even by Tatooine standards, which were never high. It was cold, damp, and decidedly smelly, resembling nothing more than a sewage-covered cave. At least on the outside. Inside, it resembled a second-rate hotel that could have been located anywhere in the galaxy.

"Now, if we can come up with an idea of how to proceed, I can reach out to my contacts." Dash said, leaning back in his chair. "Do we have any ideas?"

"Yes." Luke said calmly. "I have one."


	27. Chapter 27

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Now that things were relatively quiet, Luke wanted to try contacting Aurora, although he'd keep it very brief. He had removed the Imperial uniform and was now clad in the clean clothes that Dash had provided. They were rather comfortable, and for some reason, the black shirt, pants, and vest felt right. He didn't stop to analyze why, he just accepted it. Maybe that was part of becoming a Jedi. Just learning to accept things without constantly questioning.

He settled himself into a cross-legged position, as he had so many times on Dagobah with Master Yoda, missing for just one moment the sensation of warm mud.

_Relax…let your mind go…._

He concentrated, focused on a familiar presence and then spoke the name aloud: "Aurora…"

He waited, eyes closed, reaching out through the Force. "Aurora, I'm here. I'm coming for you."

_Page Break_

It was taking longer than she had hoped. Several days had passed and although she had managed to figure out how to slice into the computer and get the necessary codes, she hadn't quite figured out exactly how she and Leia were going to get out of the palace. From what she had seen of it, the place was a maze, and a heavily guarded maze at that. But time was moving swiftly and she was starting to get very nervous. Too much time had passed and she knew Luke would be well on his way here, if he hadn't already arrived. It was imperative that she and Leia be well away from here in order to keep Luke from coming anywhere near Coruscant and, consequently, Vader.

Suddenly, a ripple passed through the Force, bringing Aurora's head up swiftly. She froze, focusing on the sensation for a moment, and a chill swept over her.

_Luke._

He was here, on Coruscant. She could feel his presence. Seconds later a thought touched her mind.

_Aurora._

It was similar to the sensation she had experienced on Bespin; not quite telepathy, but not far from it, and this time much stronger. Whether that was from proximity or if Luke was getting stronger, she didn't know, but either one signaled a disaster. If she could sense this, then she had no doubt that Vader could as well.

_Aurora, I'm here. I'm coming for you._

She did her best to send back a definitive negative, to make him go, but he was already gone. Not that he would have listened to her anyway; sometimes that need of his to play the hero got in the way of common sense.

She sighed. That tore it. She had to get Leia out of here and find Luke before Vader did. Ready or not, it was time to go. She'd just have to wing it and hope that the Force was with them.

_Page Break_

Getting into Xizor's private suite was the easy part. She remembered the way, and the few guards that she had run into were easily dispatched. Even slicing the computer didn't prove too much of a challenge. She had spent the last few days learning the ins and outs of Xizor's system and, with a little help from the Force, was able to access the passwords. Even locating the correct comlink code was a rather simple matter.

No, the hard part was getting past the boorish officiousness of the Imperial bureaucracy.

Sweat was starting to trickle down her back as she spent countless minutes arguing with the officer who must function as the equivalent of Vader's receptionist, and who refused to put her through to Vader's comlink.

Finally, sheer panic forced her into desperation. She knew it was dangerous to mention Luke's name over an open link, but she didn't have much choice at this point. Xizor could return to his office at any time and there was no way she was going to be able to talk her way out of this one.

"Tell Lord Vader that I have a message regarding Luke Skywalker."

She could tell by the way the officer's face froze that there were certain standing orders regarding Luke, just as she had hoped, but he did his best to bluff his way out of the situation.

"And that message would be?" He asked.

"For Lord Vader." Aurora replied coldly.

Before he could speak again, she continued. "Lieutenant, you have a choice here: you can continue to argue with me and waste my time and yours, and possibly delay information that Lord Vader is waiting for…" She paused, letting the implications of that linger in his mind. "_Or_ you can advise Lord Vader of what I have said and let him decide for himself whether he wishes to speak with me or not."

There was a long moment while the Imperial weighed the various risks. One did not disturb the Dark Lord unnecessarily, not if you wanted to keep your rank. On the other hand, interfering in any way with Vader's obsessive hunt for the Rebel Skywalker was a sure way to sign your own death warrant.

"I will advise Lord Vader of your message." The lieutenant finally answered through stiff lips. "Who shall I tell him the message is from?"

Here it was. Once she spoke, her actions were irrevocable and she was putting not only herself, but Leia at risk. She didn't doubt for one moment that Vader could eventually trace the link call; he would know exactly where she was and would very likely not have any problem coming to retrieve her. It all came down to what she was willing to risk to keep Luke safe.

_Anything_.

Aurora took a deep breath. "Tell him the message is from Aurora Kenobi."

She caught the look of surprise on the officer's face before he blanked the screen to waiting mode, and hoped her own emotions weren't as clear to see.

_Page Break_

Lieutenant Lurvis was so shocked he didn't even bother to tell the caller to hold; just hit the pause key and instantly triggered in the correct link. _Aurora Kenobi was contacting Lord Vader regarding Luke Skywalker._ He imagined that any combination of those names would have elicited instant action from anyone in the Empire. From the lowest ranks on up it had been made very clear that any information regarding Skywalker or Kenobi was to be passed on _immediately._ And now here was Kenobi contacting them herself. Was she actually an agent for the Empire? Lurvis was nearly positive that he really didn't want to know. That was the kind of information that got you killed.

His hands were shaking at he waited for the call to complete.

Lord Vader's distinctive bass voice came through immediately.

"Yes?"

Lurvis cleared his throat nervously, trying to quell the quiver that had entered his voice.

"Sir, I-I'm sorry to disturb you, but there is a comm. for you."

Only the dreaded hiss of Vader's respirator could be heard.

"She says it's regarding the Rebel Skywalker, s-sir." Lurvis continued, trying desperately to get the information out before Vader's legendary temper struck. He wondered distantly if Vader could reach this far with the Force.

Vader's breathing quickened audibly. "Skywalker?"

"Yes, my Lord. The caller identified herself as Aurora Kenobi."

There was another long pause and Lurvis tensed his muscles in anticipation of a ghostly hand closing around his throat.

"Put her through."

"Yes, sir." The lieutenant replied, relief coursing through him. "At once." Fingers dancing, he connected the calls and then slumped back in his chair. As soon as his shift was over he was going out and getting thoroughly drunk.

_Page Break_

Vader contemplated the screen in front of him, his thoughts racing as he waited for the link to connect. Why would Aurora Kenobi be contacting him, and about Luke of all things? It had only been a few hours since that brief flicker in the Force had alerted him to his son's presence here on Coruscant, and now one of his son's known companions was contacting him by link of all things.

The screen flickered, and her image appeared.

As Vader studied her intently, trying to gauge her emotions, he realized that he was unconsciously studying her face for any resemblance to his former master. Scowling behind his mask, he forced himself to stop and focus entirely on her Force signature. If he concentrated, he could feel a quiver in the Force marking her presence, but he doubted he would have known it was there if he wasn't deliberately looking for it. Whether this marked her potential or not, he didn't know. Considering how very far away from him she could be, it was rather remarkable that he could sense her at all.

"Lord Vader." She spoke, her voice as calm as her face appeared.

"Commander." Vader acknowledged her. "Why are you contacting me?"

"I thought you might want to know that Luke Skywalker is in danger. There has been a significant bounty offered to anyone who can kill him. There have already been several attempts."

The Sith lord ruthlessly repressed any sense of concern he might have had. "And this concerns me how?"

"I was under the impression that you wished to retrieve Luke as a prize for your Emperor?"

Vader shrugged, feigning indifference. "If the boy cannot even defend himself from bounty hunters, than perhaps he is not the prize the Emperor wished for."

She gazed back at him before a slight smile appeared on her lips. "And your own plans for him…._ relatively_ speaking?"

An unwilling twinge of admiration for her audacity rippled through him, as well as surprise. Luke had obviously shared their conversation on Bespin with her, something that amazed him. The boy had been so utterly horrified at the revelation of his true parentage, that Vader would have been willing to bet he'd do anything possible to keep it a secret. And yet he had obviously shared the information with this girl. Once again, he found himself speculating on exactly what the relationship was between his son and Obi Wan's daughter. Friends? Lovers? Amusement curved his lips under the concealing mask, tugging at scar tissue. No doubt Kenobi was turning over in his grave at the mere possibility. His attention returned to the image in front of him. The girl was undeniably clever, but that didn't mean he was willing to be manipulated. "What is it that you wish?"

"For you to prevent the interested party from killing Luke."

"And you will give me what in return?"

All trace of amusement left her face. "You misunderstand, Lord Vader. I am not bargaining with you. I am offering you knowledge of a threat to Luke Skywalker and giving you the opportunity to prevent damage to an item that the Emperor wishes to acquire. That is it."

Rarely had anyone ever spoken so to the Dark Lord of the Sith. Those few that had were no longer amongst the living. It was almost refreshing. For the moment. "That offers little incentive to me."

She shrugged indifferently. "Then it appears this conversation is over."

But Vader was no fool, and despite her apparent indifference, he could sense the fear that she was suppressing.

"Just like that? You've gone to a great deal of trouble to initiate this conversation; it seems doubtful that you would give up that easily." He leaned back in his chair. "Give me the boy's location and I will protect him."

Her face flickered with anger briefly. "Do you really think I'd betray Luke to you?"

"And yet you expect me to protect him. How, precisely, do you imagine that I can do that if you don't reveal where he is?"

"Go after the person offering the bounty." She smiled blithely. "After all, Luke's listed on the Imperial warrants as Alive Only. This person is purposely defying the Empire. I thought that was frowned on."

"And yet a few foolish beings continue to do so." He returned dryly, amused despite himself. "I'm constantly amazed at the idiocy of the galaxy in general."

A reluctant smile crossed her face, but she refused to be distracted from her goal. "Luke's status as an item of importance to you in particular is fairly well known. So this particular idiot isn't only defying the Empire, he's defying you personally."

"Is that supposed to inspire me to some action? I am a loyal servant of the Empire. That is sufficient motivation for me."

"Then you should be motivated on two fronts." She retorted.

Vader acknowledged the point with an inclination of his head. "Give me Skywalker's location and I will demonstrate how particularly motivated I am."

Green eyes narrowed as she looked at him, clearly aware that they had reached a stalemate. "I told you, I'm not interested in bargaining. I gave you the information; do what you want with it."

"And I told you, you have provided me with insufficient incentive to do anything." He said, injecting a note of finality into his voice.

The girl lowered her eyes for a moment, clearly trying to make some sort of decision. Vader waited silently, repressing the sense of urgency that was building in him. Luke was here, on Imperial Center, nearly in reach. But the planet was too immense for him to find Luke without more information, and this girl had it. If only he could convince her to reveal it to him…an idea came to him, although he was reluctant to implement it, as it would mean revealing more of himself than he had to anyone else in years. Still, if it meant that he could locate his son, than wasn't anything worth it?

Decision made, he spoke again. "Luke….told you of our conversation on Bespin?"

She looked up in surprise as his voice broke into her thoughts. "Yes." She waited for him to continue.

"Does he believe me?" He despised himself for asking, but he couldn't stop it, anymore than he could prevent the frisson of hope that reared its head.

Something shown in her eyes for a moment, compassion perhaps. "I don't know."

"Ah." Vader ignored the twinge of pain that knowledge of Luke's denial caused him. It was nothing. Once he had the boy in his grasp, then Luke would have to acknowledge the truth of his parentage.

But the brief flash of pain must have been evident through the Force as the girl was staring at him now with surprise and some understanding on her face. She bit her lip indecisively for a moment and then spoke quickly. "You know, idiots aren't the only ones in the galaxy that defy the Empire."

"No," Vader said carefully. "There are also those whose motives are…purportedly altruistic, however misguided and simplistic."

They both knew he was referring to the Rebel Alliance, but Aurora ignored it. "Or those who feel they are so powerful that they are above the law."

Vader stared at her, trying to discern her meaning.

"Trace the call, Lord Vader." She stated bluntly, and abruptly the call ended.

For a long moment, Vader sat in front of the dark comm. screen, replaying the conversation in his mind. Her last comment; he'd thought she was making a bleak reference to Luke, but that didn't fit with her demand that he trace the call. A feeling began to tug at his mind, and he reached over to flick a switch. When the officer answered, he cut off the habitual greeting. "The last call that was directed to my link. Trace it."

"Yes, my lord. One moment." Several minutes later the officer came back. "It originated from here on Imperial Center. There were built in protections on it so that we cannot get the exact number or location, but it appears to have been located near Quadrant Alpha 29E. I'm afraid we cannot get more precise than that. The computers –"

Vader flicked the switch again, cutting him off in sentence. He didn't need to hear the rest. How interesting that Prince Xizor's residence just happened to be in that particular quadrant. Someone so powerful they were above the law, the girl had said. But what reason could the Falleen prince possibly have for challenging the Emperor in this manner? Or was it the Emperor he was challenging?

Abruptly he stood and moved to a private link. When the small man on the other end of the line answered, Vader spoke shortly. "I want any information that you can find as to why Prince Xizor may have a personal grudge against me."

"At once, my lord."

Vader disconnected and crossed to his meditation chamber. He needed to think on this new development.


	28. Chapter 28

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas.

"Okay," Dash said as they all sat around a small table in the hotel's restaurant. "This is the center of the Empire-"

"It is?" Lando cut in, feigning fear. "Uh-oh. We shouldn't be here. Why, it could be…_dangerous_."

Dash scowled at him, but Luke just waved at him to continue. "What's your point, Dash?"

"The Empire is corrupt. It runs less on loyalty and honor than it does on bribes and graft. Credits lube the gears, and nowhere more than here."

"So? You think we're going to be able to bribe a guard? I don't think Black Sun is likely to put that kind of person on the door." Lando said, breaking a piece of bread in half and dipping it into some kind of green sauce.

"Not a guard, an engineer."

"What am I missing here?" Luke asked.

"In a bureaucracy, everything has to be filed and copied and logged in quadruplicate. You can't build anything without permits, licenses, inspections, plans. All we need to do is find the right engineer, one who maybe gambles too much or has more taste than he's got money."

Luke was gratified to see that Lando and Chewie looked just as blank as he did.

"All right, here's the idea." Dash explained. "We know that the really big buildings on this planet extend as far under the surface as they do above it. One thing I know is, no matter how much graywater recycling and reclamation you do, some of it is always going to be lost. Waste products, sewage, they have to be pumped away where bigger and more efficient systems can work on them."

"Basic stuff, don't foul your own nest." Lando said. "So?"

"A building as big as this one," Dash said, tapping his finger against the holographic postcard that showed several buildings, including the Imperial palace, "generates a lot of waste. There has to be a way to get rid of it. I haven't seen any garbage vans or drain wagons on the streets or in the skies of Coruscant, so they have to break the solid waste down and pump it away, probably as a slurry. Therefore we're talking about pipes."

Luke got it, but obviously Lando and Chewie didn't because they still looked confused. "Big pipes." Luke told them.

Chewie said something.

Lando nodded. "Chewie is right. Those conduits, if they are big enough to admit people, will certainly be guarded."

The Wookiee spoke again.

"Yeah," Dash agreed, "Those drains will be hard to locate, given that every building will have similar systems. It's probably a monster maze under the ground."

"Right, but there will probably be fewer guards posted on a big sewage drain than the doors aboveground. They wouldn't really expect any kind of assault that way; you couldn't move a lot of troops in without making noise their sensors would pick up. But a few men would be lost in the background gurgle, if they were carful." Luke said, thinking about it.

Lando looked carefully at each of them. "Assuming we could find a guide, you're saying you want us to wade through kilometers of _sewage_ to get into this place?" He took a long drink from his bottle.

Dash grinned at him. "Exactly what the guards would think. Who would be that stupid?"

The gambler sighed and shook his head. "Us. Who else?"

"And finding a guide is no problem. I know somebody."

"I've heard _that_ before." Luke said, picking up his own bottle.

_Page Break_

Dash's contact turned out to be a short, thin man named Benedict Vidkun. His skin was the color of dirty paper, pale and tired looking from lack of sunlight. According to him, he worked nights, slept days and never saw the sun. He also had a much younger wife with very expensive tastes, which explained why he was willing to scan systems, make maps and lead them wherever they wanted to go – as long as they paid him.

None of them had many credits on them, but Luke knew how to access an account that Leia had set up for emergencies, and if this didn't count as an emergency, then he didn't know what did.

Vidkun tapped the holomap in front of him. "See this conduit? This is the subsewer for the entire sector. You could drive a landspeeder through it; it's huge. The branch we want is here." He pointed at another part of the holograph. "That one drains Xizor's castle. There's a locked gate to keep out rats and snake eyes and other vermin, but maintenance has the key codes. After that, it's a clear shot to the building pipes, here. About a half kilometer is all."

He tapped a control on the projector and the view shifted, narrowing in a section of tunnels.

"How big are those?" Luke asked.

"You can see, they're to scale. Big enough for a couple of men to walk side by side, if they ain't too tall." He glanced sideways at Chewie. "The Wook here'll have to hunch down some."

Chewie growled at the little man.

"Those go into the building itself?"

"Yeah. There'll be another rat-grate where they enter the structure. We're not supposed to have the lock does for those, but well, it so happens my brother-in-law Daiv works for the firm that got the construction of Xizor's castle and I can give you those. For a consideration." He smiled, showing yellowed teeth.

Luke and Lando exchanged glances.

"How much of a consideration?" Dash asked.

"Two hundred and fifty credits."

"A hundred and twenty-five." Lando countered before Dash could speak.

"Save us a lot of trouble, we got those codes." Vidkun replied, scratching his head. "Two hundred."

"Blaster energy is cheaper." Lando smiled. "We can blow the locks. One-fifty."

"Make a lot of noise, you don't want that. One-seventy-five."

Lando nodded. "Deal."

The short man smiled again, rubbing his hands together. "Now, we got to watch out for the varmint zapper, here." He tapped the hologram. "Walk into that field and _bzzzt_! It'll cook you faster'n a high-amp microwave blast. As it happens, my other brother-in-law, Lair, he installs these things, and I have the bypass codes."

"For a consideration." Luke said dryly.

Vidkin smiled at him. "Same price as the other?"

Lando just gazed up at the ceiling.

"All right." Dash said.

Looking please, the engineer continued. "After that, all you got to worry about is getting out of the gather chamber and past whatever guards are down there. I can't help you there; Xizor uses his own people and I don't know any of 'em."

"We'll manage." Dash told him.

Vidkun glanced at him, then nodded before pushing himself away from the table. "Okay then. I'll just –"

"Where do you think you're going?" Lando asked him.

"Huh? Home."

"I don't think so." Dash replied. "I think maybe you'll stay here with us."

"But you said you ain't ready to go until tomorrow."

"We changed our minds." Dash said, his hand dropping to the handle of his blaster. "We want to go now. And since we don't want to find a squad of stormtroopers or Black Sun guards waiting for us when we starting wading through the sewers, we'd rather you didn't make any calls."

"Hey," Vidkin protested, attempting to sound outraged. "I wouldn't turn you in!"

"Not unless you thought you could get more for us from Black Sun or the Empire." Lando replied. "But since you're going to be leading us, anybody starts shooting, guess who get's it first?"

The little man swallowed nervously. "How about if I call my wife and tell her? She'll be really mad at me if I don't."

"So buy her a nice present when you get back." Dash suggested. "You'll have a pocketful of credits; you can make it up to her."

Vidkin tried to smile, but it shook. "Yeah. Well, I guess so, since I don't have much of a choice."

"No, you don't." Lando smiled.

_Page Break_

Vader stood on the balcony of his personal castle, ignoring the wind that tugged at the hem of his cape. His thoughts were on his son. He'd tried to reach out and sense him again, but there had been nothing since that brief sensation previously. He'd attempted to locate him then, and had found what he thought was Luke, although the sensation had been strangely split, almost as if the boy had been in two different places at once, which was obviously impossible. Of course, now that he knew Aurora Kenobi was here, that would explain the double sensation. But then that also meant that she was not currently with his son.

Of course, none of that was important right now. What was important was the reason that Luke had come to Imperial Center, of all places. Was he actually looking for Vader? And if so, for what reason; to get more information from him or to challenge him? The fact that the boy had made no effort to contact him combined with what Obi Wan's daughter had said during that brief conversation inclined him towards the latter.

A voice behind him interrupted his thoughts.

"My lord Vader?"

He turned to see the little man who had brought him information regarding Xizor previously. So far, he had been able to track down information showing that someone had bribed a crew chief in the Rebellion to rig an astromech droid, but there hadn't been anything linking it to Black Sun let alone Xizor himself. Perhaps now there was more.

"You have something for me?"

"Yes, my lord. We have uncovered a pirated copy of certain of the planetary files for Falleen, thought to be destroyed."

"Why should I find this interesting?"

"It contains some material about Prince Xizor's family. His father was king of a small nation there."

Vader frowned behind the mask. "I know his father was royalty, but I have been given to understand that Prince Xizor was orphaned at an early age."

"Not precisely, my lord. You may recall a biological experiment on Falleen that….went awry a decade or so past."

"Yes, I recall."

"During the, ah, _sterilization_ procedure, some Imperial citizens' lives were lost."

"A regrettable incident."

The little man showed him a hologram of a group of Falleen, all of whom bore a striking similarity to each other. One of them was Xizor.

"Prince Xizor's family." The little man explained. "All of whom were killed during the destruction of the mutant bacterium that escaped from the lab."

Vader understood immediately. Black Sun's attack on Luke wasn't a challenge to the Emperor. It was directed at himself. It was _personal_. Xizor must have found out that Luke was his son, and now he was after revenge: Vader's family in exchange for his own lost one.

"How did the records of this come to be destroyed?"

"We do not know." The little man said. "For some reason, all references to Xizor's family simply vanished, shortly after the destruction of the city."

Vader had nominally been in charge of that particular project. The Falleen prince must blame him for his family's death, and so now he was after Vader's son. It had nothing to do with discrediting him in the eyes of the Emperor at all; it was revenge pure and simple.

He dismissed the little spy with gratitude and the promise of ample reward, before returning to his brooding. How exactly would be the best way to approach this?

He would have to plan this carefully and thoughtfully.


	29. Chapter 29

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Once a plan was decided on, they moved swiftly, and had everyone outfitted with anything they could think of that they might need in the sewers. Chewie had even managed to find himself a bowcaster somewhere. Luke himself was sticking with his lightsaber. It just felt right. He considered trying to contact Aurora again; he was worried that she and Leia might get impatient and take matters into their own hands, but decided that the risk of alerting Vader to his presence was too great. Still, he wished he could talk to her just once before they undertook this crazy plan. He didn't like the way they had left things and he really regretted the way he had handled the whole situation. Most of all, he simply missed her. They hadn't been apart for this long since they had met, and he hadn't realized how much he'd come to rely on her presence.

But was that a good thing or a bad thing?

Dash interrupted the tangled cycle of his thoughts.

"Ready?"

Luke took a breath. "Let's do it."

_Page Break_

Vader had made up his mind. The Emperor had warned him once before about the overt antagonism between himself and the Falleen prince, so simply walking up and crushing the life out of Xizor was out of the question, despite his inclination. Therefore he would obey the Emperor, in his own fashion.

The link call went through with gratifying quickness.

"Lord Vader. What a pleasant surprise." Xizor said, his manner as pleasant as always.

Vader, for his part, despised such useless pleasantries and spoke simply and directly. "Perhaps not so pleasant. I have been made aware of your attempts to kill Luke Skywalker. You will cease all attempts to harm the boy immediately."

Xizor's face remained neutral. "Your information is in error, Lord Vader. And even if it were correct, I am given to understand that the boy is a Rebel officer, all of whom are traitors and wanted dead or alive. Is this sudden change of policy an official Imperial decree?"

Vader ignored the question. He had only one thing to say, and he intended to make it perfectly clear. "If Skywalker is harmed, I will hold _you_ personally accountable."

"I see." Xizor replied, the pleasant smile long gone. "I assure you that if I should happen to come across Skywalker, I will extend to him the same courtesy I would to you, Lord Vader."

He might have said more, but Vader disconnected. He had made his point, and Xizor could not possibly pretend to have misunderstood. He had been warned; if he continued to pursue Luke, then he was fair game. Not even the Emperor would dispute that. Vader almost hoped the Falleen _would_ try again, just so he'd have an excuse to eliminate him.

_Page Break_

Luke didn't think he'd ever find a worse smell than that of the Imperial garbage chute on the Death Star, but within seconds of entering the sewers, he'd discovered that he had been very, very wrong. The sludge flowing sluggishly down the center of the tunnel was a sort of greenish-black, and the smell defied description. It was a disgusting combination of liquid and solid, and they were walking ankle deep in it. Luke didn't even want to think about the contents. Smelling it was more than enough.

Ahead of them, there was a strange chirping noise, followed by two small plops, as if something had dropped into the slop.

Chewie, who was in the lead, muttered something and stopped.

Lando, right behind him, poked him in the back. "I heard it. It's not my fault you didn't want to wear boots. Go on, it's more afraid of you than you are of it."

From the rear, Dash snickered. "Yeah, better watch yourself, Chewbacca. I hear that sewer serpents _love _Wookiee toes!"

Chewie's reply was short, sharp, and decidedly profane.

"Fine," Lando said. "Forget the life debt you owe Han. Let the bad guys keep Leia and Aurora because you're afraid of a toothless little slitherette."

Chewie growled something else profane, but he started moving again.

"What's up with the Wook?" Vidkun asked from where he was walking in front of Luke.

"He doesn't like little swimming or running things." Luke answered. "He _really_ doesn't like them."

Vidkun shrugged and continued forward, completely oblivious to the disgusting substance he was trudging through or whatever might be living in it.

Suddenly from behind them, Dash yelled. "Hey! Look out!"

Luke spun, drawing his lightsaber and flicking it on as he did. In the sudden bright light he caught sight of a large, bloodshot eye on a fleshy stalk rising out of the muck directly behind him. He also caught site of Dash's drawn blaster.

"Don't shoot!" He yelled, even as he crouched and swung. The blade of the lightsaber cut through the stalk effortlessly, and then as the coils of the dianoga began to thrash violently, he stepped up and swung down, cutting the body in half.

The death spasms ended abruptly.

Dash reholstered his blaster. "Nice move, kid."

"I've seen these things before." Luke told him. "Last time I ran into one was in a trash compactor. It nearly got me."

Chewie harned in agreement.

Dash raised an eyebrow. "That's the time you and Aurora were talking about back on Tatooine. You spend a lot of time in places like this?"

"More than I'd like."

Dash shook his head. "No wonder she won't look at you twice."

Lando snickered. "Oh, I wouldn't say _that_. Would you, Chewie?"

The Wookiee roared out a laugh and added a comment. Luke didn't quite catch all of it, something about Aurora and an overreaction to something, but it was enough to have him fighting a blush. Obviously Lando and Chewie had figured out that something was going on, but not exactly what; which was how Luke planned on keeping it. He was having enough problems figuring out what to do about the situation between himself and Aurora without having ribald commentary from everyone else.

Dash was looking back and forth between Luke and Lando. "Can't be too much going on. When I got there the kid was obviously sleeping on the couch."

Luke felt a sudden surge of gratification towards the swoop troop, whose sudden arrival had prevented him from putting away the blankets he'd been using.

Lando was eying Luke speculatively, but he thankfully dropped the subject. "Come on. We can continue this conversation in a far less _fragrant_ environment."

They continued wading through the slop until Vidkun suddenly pointed, "Just ahead, there."

There were two large, round holes in the far wall, covered with thick metal mesh gates, each a finger's width thick. The lips of the holes were angled down slightly, so that runnels of thick sludge could ooze out of them.

"Okay, Vidkun," Lando said, wading towards them. "Let's see if those codes you have work."

The engineer moved forward and punched a keycode into the locking mechanism. It took a moment, but the gates swung forward slowly.

Vidkun turned around, smiling. "See? Just like I told you. We want the one on the right."

Chewie started to climb into the new tunnel. It was slightly smaller than the current one they were in, so it was a little short for him. Unfortunately, in the process of climbing in, he slipped, and almost went in. He managed to catch himself, but had to put one paw into the goop to do it. He pulled it out with a loud sucking sound and shook it violently, sending dank globs of muck everywhere as he cursed.

"Careful." Vidkun said mildly. "It's a little slippery in places."

The look that Chewie turned on him was decidedly murderous.

Lando was chuckling to himself. "Yeah, be careful, you big clumsy – yow!"

He skidded and sat down abruptly in the sludge. He came up almost instantly, but not fast enough to prevent the seat of his pants from being soaked through.

Chewie was laughing so hard he almost went into the muck again.

Luke had to fight to keep from bursting out laughing himself. It served Lando right. But he didn't want to tempt fate and find himself the next victim.

"You should have worn old clothes." Dash told Lando.

"Hey, Rendar, I don't _have_ any old clothes." Lando replied.

"You do now. I don't think you'll ever get 'em clean enough to wear in public. They'd drum you right out of the Elite Stormtroopers smelling like that."

"Shut up." Lando told him.

They carefully climbed up the slight incline into the smaller tunnel and continued on.

"Coming up on the zap field." Vidkun said laconically.

"Lemme run the deactivator."

He fiddled for a few seconds with the black box he was carrying. The air in front of him shimmered a little, then popped abruptly with a purplish light.

"Should be okay now." He said with satisfaction.

"Fine, you go first." Lando told him.

The engineer glared at them, but moved forward cautiously a few meters. When nothing happened, the rest of them followed.

Luke tried to ignore the smell as they walked, but it was so overpowering that he couldn't ignore it. He'd thought that after a while, he'd get used to it, but so far that hadn't happened. It was all he could do not to retch.

The smell was all around them and even though he hadn't touched it directly, other than his boots, he knew the smell was clinging to him. It was going to take a _long_ hot shower to get the stench off.

Nor was he the only one who seemed to feel that way. Lando was holding his sleeve over his nose, and Chewie kept letting out low moans of unhappiness.

Vidkun alone seemed oblivious to the odor, trudging along silently. "Not far now." He said blandly.

"Good." Lando, Luke, and Dash all said at the same time. Chewie yowled his own agreement. Even a firefight with Xizor's guards would be better than this.

"There." Vidkun whispered, pointing. "There's the entrance to the building. It leads into the recycler in the sub-subbasement. There won't be any guards inside the recycler itself, but there will probably be some in the adjoining flow chamber. Here's the key to the rat-grate." He held out a plastic card to Lando and turned to leave. "See ya."

Dash stepped in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Hey, I'm done." The little man protested. "I got you into the building; I got you the floor plans for the place; that was the deal."

"Well, I guess you have us there." Dash said. "That was the deal, all right. But you see, there's been a little change in our itinerary."

Vidkun looked suddenly worried.

"Easy, we aren't going to blast you or anything. We'd just like you come along until we get to a place where you can safely…wait for us."

The engineer looked stubborn. "No offense or anything, but what if you get killed? I might be waiting for a long time!"

"I guess you'll have to take that chance." Lando replied, moving up next to them. "It's not that we don't trust you. It's just that we don't trust you. Besides, it'll be a lot nicer inside." He gestured at the oozing blackish green sludge.

"I don't mind the runoff," Vidkun protested. "I'm in it all the time."

"Nevertheless, we insist." Lando smiled urbanely, but his hand had dropped to his blaster.

Vidkun shrugged. "Well, okay, since you put it that way…" And before anyone even had an inkling of his plan, he'd pulled a small blaster out from under his shirt and opened fire. The first shot missed entirely, but the second hit Dash; Luke heard him grunt out a breath.

It had all happened so fast that they hadn't even had a chance to react. Luke had his lightsaber out and ready for the next shot, but Dash had pulled his blaster and put a shot right between Vidkun's eyes before the small man could fire a third time. The engineer's body tumbled backward with a loud glopping noise, before sliding slightly down the slope.

Luke turned away to check on Dash. "You okay?"

"I'm good. Just scorched me a little." He turned to show them where the shot had burned a line across his hip, doing little more than raising a blister along the skin.

"Don't get any of this crud on you." Lando told him, waving his hand at the sludge. "Probably wouldn't do you any good."

"I hadn't planned to, regardless." Dash said dryly.

"Where'd he get the blaster?" Luke asked. They'd very deliberately not given any weapons to Vidkun when they'd armed themselves.

"Must have had it concealed all along." Lando said. "What I'm wondering is, why'd he do it? We weren't going to hurt him."

"Guy like that, he figures he sold out, why shouldn't we?" Dash replied, slapping the bacta patch that Luke had handed him onto the wound. He hissed out a breath as the topical painkillers in the gel started to work. He glanced over at the body and addressed it. "I stand corrected. I guess we _were_ going to blast you. But it wasn't our idea."

"Let's hope the guards didn't hear the shooting." Lando said.

Chewie harned in agreement.

"Yeah." Luke replied, looking around. He took a deep breath. "Ready?"

Nearly as one, they climbed into the grate and continued on.


	30. Chapter 30

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

"Uh oh." Luke whispered.

Behind him, where he was crouched in the recycler, Lando whispered back. "I do _not _need to hear that." He waited a moment, and then whispered again. "What?"

"Guards." Luke said softly, barely loud enough for Lando to hear. The chamber they were crouched in seemed eerily quiet. Other than the soft slopping of the muck around their ankles, and the slight hum of the converter inset into the walls, that was generating more muck, there wasn't any other noise.

"So?" Lando asked now.

"There are six of them."

"Six? To guard a sewage plant?"

Dash joined into the conversation from behind them. "So what? That's only one and a half each. How long does it take for you to pull a trigger, Calrissian?"

"Listen, pal, don't worry about how long I-"

"Shhh!" Luke hissed. He peered through the fogged-over plate covering the recycler's door. There _were_ six men in the tiny chamber only meters away, but four of them were sitting at a table playing sabaac, with their blast rifles leaning against the wall. The other two were armed, but their rifles were slung over their shoulders, not in their hands, as they watched the card game.

Dash was right; if they moved fast, they could have all of the guards covered before any of them could move. Then they could disarm them, restrain them, and be on their merry way, without anyone being the wiser. The trick would be making sure that none of them hit a comlink before they could stop them.

He moved away from the door and over to the others. "Okay, here's the plan: Dash, you pop the hatch; I'll go first; Chewie is right behind me, then Lando. You come last."

"Whoa, why that order?" Dash demanded. "And who put you in charge?"

"I can stop a bolt with my lightsaber if anyone gets a shot off." Luke explained. "Chewie is pretty impressive with his bowcaster; they'll pay more attention to him than you or Lando. Plus he's a better shot if it comes to that."

"Not a better shot than I am." Dash stated. "And it'd be a lot easier just to jump out and mow 'em all down. We hit 'em fast and hard, they're history."

"That's the difference between us and the Empire." Luke said quietly. "They wouldn't hesitate to do it that way. We don't shoot unless we have to."

"Fine." Dash said with disgust. "Get us all killed being a nice guy."

Luke ignored him. There were times that he questioned the ways of the Force and the choices that he had to make, but not this time. This was the right thing to do. Because Master Yoda was right; there was a difference between being a warrior and being a killer.

"Okay, ready?" Luke held the lightsaber down low to the side so that the glow wouldn't show, and ignited it. He took several breaths, reaching for the Force. "On three. One…two…_three_!"

Dash shoved the hatch open and Luke leaped up, his lightsaber already coming up into a blocking position.

"Nobody move!"

Chewie jumped out behind him –

And hit the floor with a loud splat as his wet feet went out from under him.

Lando tried to leap over him, but tripped instead and sprawled facedown.

The startled guards leapt up from the table, scrambling for their weapons.

_Shavit!_

_Page Break_

Aurora suddenly jerked up from the chair she was sitting in as a hot jolt of fear went through her.

_Luke!_

_Page Break_

Despite their lousy job assignment, the guards weren't slow. The two standing were already unslinging their weapons and firing, while the others dived for their rifles.

Luke blocked the first shot, shifted, blocked the second –

Dash dove over Lando and Chewie, rolled once, and came up shooting. He fired once, twice, three times –

The two guards went down, but another one had gotten his hands on his weapon and spun away from the wall, shooting –

Chewie brought the bowcaster up and fired –

The third guard went down, just as the fourth one opened up with his blaster –

Luke barely blocked an overhead shot, but the reflected shot hit the light fixture overhead, shattering it, and making the room suddenly dimmer –

Dash and Chewie were both firing frantically –

The guards were all down now, except for the last, and he didn't even have a blaster. Instead he was yelling –

Yelling into a _comlink_ –

Lando shot him, and he dropped; the comlink fell out of his hand and rolled to a stop next to Luke's boots.

There was a tinny voice coming from it. "Thix? What is going on down there? Thix? Come in, sector one-one-three-eight, come in -?"

With a resigned sigh, Luke smashed the comlink under his heel, grinding it into the floor.

Chewie got to his feet, looking decidedly sheepish.

"So much for sneaking in quietly." Lando said.

_Page Break_

They ran for it. Whether anyone realized what had happened or thought it was just a communication glitch, there was no point in taking chances. So far the floor plan they had memorized was accurate, but it was too large to have learned all of it and time was of the essence at this point. There was no telling how long it would take them to find Leia and Aurora.

Chewie, having been here before, was in the lead.

The four of them came around a sharp corner into a wide corridor and suddenly found themselves facing a group of equally startled guards.

Everyone started shooting.

In the middle of the chaos, the comlink on Luke's belt suddenly beeped and Threepio's voice came out of it. "Master Luke, Master Luke!"

Busy blocking incoming blaster bolts, all Luke could do was yell in the direction of the comlink. "We're busy here, Threepio!"

"But, Master Luke, there are men coming toward the ship! Men with guns!"

_Kriffing hell!_

Luke blocked another shot, and chopped down at the hand holding the blaster, sending both the hand and the weapon to the floor. Then he spun and thrust a side kick into the guard's face, dropping him instantly.

The other guards were down, and Luke simply pointed his lightsaber down the corridor from which the guards had just come. "That way – it ought to be clear."

As they ran, he pulled the comlink from his belt and thumbed it. "Threepio?"

"Oh, dear, oh dear!"

"Threepio!"

"Master Luke! Oh, what shall we do?"

"Take the ship out of there, now! Just like we talked about. Artoo knows the systems; you can operate the controls. Call me back when you're in the air. Keep it suborbital and under the stratospheric security scanners, you got that?"

"Yes, Master Luke!"

"Go!"

Lando was staring at him in horror. "Did you just tell the droids to _fly_ the ship?"

"There was no choice. Threepio said armed men were coming."

Lando shook his head. "Man, you are screwed, 'cause even if you don't buy it here, Han is going to _kill_ you!"

_Page Break_

Aurora felt someone approaching her room. She didn't even have to concentrate to tell that it wasn't Luke.

Without hesitation, she dragged one of the chairs over next to the door, and hopped on it, drawing her lightsaber from her back at the same time.

The door opened and Guri stepped in. She was inhumanly fast, but with the aid of the Force, so was Aurora, and Aurora was already moving. She swung the lightsaber as hard as she could, and ruthlessly slammed the metal handle into the back of Guri's head.

It was a powerful blow and would have killed a regular human. As it was, it knocked Guri sprawling into the room.

Aurora didn't waste any time. She hopped off the chair and was out the door in seconds, jamming the locking mechanism behind her.

She was halfway down the corridor, already reaching for Leia's presence in the Force, when the other two guards appeared.

_Page Break_

Leia was lying on her bed staring at the ceiling tiles. There was something in the air; a sense that something was about to happen.

Suddenly a strange feeling seemed to brush against her mind. She stiffened, wondering if this was Xizor trying a seduction again, but she didn't think so. It felt both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.

Then it happened again, and this time she got a sense of a thought behind it. Not really words, but an impression.

_Time to go._

She let out a sigh. Aurora. It was Aurora. And apparently this was the wake up call that she had promised.

With barely restrained energy, she bounded off the bed and began to gather up the parts of her disguise.


	31. Chapter 31

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

They were heading up a stairwell about a dozen levels up from where they'd entered, when Luke's comlink beeped again.

"Master Luke? We have successfully left the building."

Luke pulled the comlink off his belt so that he didn't have to yell at it. "Where are you?"

"Somewhere in the sky, Master Luke, I – what? Oh, be quiet, I'm flying it correctly, it – ah! Ahhhh!"

"Threepio?"

There was a long moment of silence, followed by a distinct crunching noise, before Threepio's voice came back. "I saw it, you blithering ash can! If you hadn't distracted me I would have turned in time."

"Threepio, what is going on?" Luke demanded.

Artoo could be heard frantically whistling in the background.

"Shut up, you twit! It was _not_ my fault!"

"Threepio?" Luke tried again desperately.

"What? Where? _Oh, no!_" Threepio's voice suddenly was obscured by the sound of breaking glass.

"_Threepio!_" So much for not yelling at the comlink.

"I'm sorry, Master Luke. Thanks to Artoo's woefully inadequate instructions, we've accidently destroyed an advertising billboard and a broadcasting tower. No, I don't think we hit that hover van, we just brushed it. Yes, it was _too_ your fault! If you hadn't been jabbering at me like an overheated _teakettle_, I would have – "

"Threepio, stop talking to Artoo and tell me what is going on." Luke forced his voice to calmness. There was no point in screaming uselessly at the droid; he was too far away to do anything to him.

"We are flying somewhere low to the ground because Artoo said we should, but I do think we should climb a bit higher. No, I don't care how much astronavigation you know, _I_ am flying the ship now. Just give me the directions."

"All right." Luke said, drawing on all the patience he possessed. "Listen. Bring the _Falcon_ to the coordinates I told you. Hurry. And gain enough altitude so you don't hit anything."

"You see? I _told_ you we were too low, but no, no one can tell _you _anything, _you _know it all –"

"Threepio!"

"Yes, Master Luke. We are on the way. No, I don't think we should go that way, that building is much too tall, we should go this way, oh _look out!_"

Luke had to break the connection at that point. Both because there was a large, fireproof door in front of them and because he didn't think his nerves could take anymore.

He tried not to notice the murderous stare that Chewie was directing his way. Apparently the Wookiee had heard enough of the conversation to get a pretty clear idea of what was going on with his beloved ship, and he was, if possible, even more protective of her than Han was, and decidedly more dangerous.

Luke decided not to worry about it just now. After all, there was the distinct possibility that he'd get killed during this rescue attempt and wouldn't have to worry about either Chewie or Han's reactions to his ordering the droids to fly the _Falcon. _How bad was it that surviving this mission suddenly seemed like the poorer of two choices?

The fireproof door was, not surprisingly, locked, and Lando was leveling his blaster at it to shoot the lock, when Luke intervened.

"Don't! It's magnetically shielded. A blaster bolt will just bounce off and probably hit one of us."

"Then how are we supposed to get through it?" Lando asked.

"Let's see if it will stop a lightsaber."

It didn't, and they continued on.

_Page Break_

Leia jumped anxiously as her door suddenly opened. Aurora stuck her head around the corner, grinning madly. "Hello. I'm Aurora Kenobi; I'm here to rescue you!"

"Very funny." Leia said, striding towards her. "What took you so long? I thought you said you were on your way?"

"Yes, well, there was a slight delay."

"A delay? What kind of –"

"Escape now, explanations later, okay?" Aurora interrupted her.

Leia took a deep breath. "I can live with that."

"Great. Here." Aurora handed her a blast rifle.

"Where'd you get this?" The princess asked, taking it from her.

"Some friends of mine left behind a few party favors when they came to visit."

For the first time, Leia noticed several bodies sprawled in the hallway behind Aurora. She glanced from them to Aurora, raising one eyebrow at the red mark on the other woman's cheek that was rapidly darkening into a bruise. "Looks like they party hard."

Aurora touched it with a certain dark satisfaction. "They certainly thought so." She shook herself. "Enough chit chat; let's go." She took off down the hall at a brisk jog.

Leia was right behind her, eyeing the second blaster rifle she had slung over her shoulder.

"Okay, so what's the plan?"

"Plan?" Aurora questioned over her shoulder.

"You do have one, right?"

"Yeah. To escape and not get killed in the process."

The princess huffed. "You know, just once it would be nice if we actually _knew_ what we were doing during one of these escapes."

"I know, right?" Aurora agreed cheerfully. "You'd think after all the practice, we'd have it down by now."

Leia snorted.

"Still," Aurora mused. "We must be doing something right; we're still alive."

"Can't argue with that." Leia decided.

_Page Break_

"Hold up a second." Lando said.

"What? Why?"

He pointed at a junction box set into the wall. "This is a security breaker."

"So?" Dash said.

"Move to that side."

They obeyed, and Lando fired a bolt into the lock mechanism, swinging the door open. "The surveillance holocams and sensors are routed through these fiber-optic cables." He indicated several cables the thickness of a man's thumb.

"How do you know that?" Luke questioned.

"Trust me. I have some experience with such things." He fired at the cables, sending sparks and smoke everywhere, which flared briefly, but spectacularly, into a blazing orange and gold fountain of flame, before they fizzled out. A distinct scent of burnt plastic filled the corridor.

"Now they won't be able to see us, at least on this level. If we take out all of these we find, they'll go blind."

Behind them, Chewie yelled, and they spun to find more guards rushing down the corridor towards them.

Firing madly behind them, they ran for it.

_Page Break_

Leia pressed back into the alcove, trying to catch her breath.

"I don't remember there being this many guards yesterday."

"Hmm." Aurora agreed. Leia noticed irritably that she wasn't even breathing hard. "Something has them stirred up."

"Is that going to make escaping easier or harder on us?"

Aurora glanced at her. "I'll tell you in about an hour. Come on."

They ducked back out of the alcove and took off running again. Aurora seemed to have some idea where she was going; at least, they hadn't run into any dead ends yet, and they had been steadily making their way down through the castle.

There had been several run-ins with guards, but nothing too bad. Aurora had managed to lead them around most of them, or at least to find someplace to hide before they were spotted.

Now they were fast approaching another locked door. As previously, Aurora slashed through the locking mechanism with her lightsaber, releasing the lock. She then began to manually slide the door open. But before it was even a quarter of the way, they heard pounding footsteps from the other side. Leia raised her blaster rifle and took aim.

Whoever was on the other side wasn't going to have a chance to call for help –

Something brushed her mind and Aurora suddenly leapt forward, "No! Don't shoot!"

_Page Break_

They rounded a corner, zagged through a side corridor, and ended up in a wide hallway with a door at the end. Hoping that they had lost the last group of guards, they sprinted wildly towards the door. However, before they reached it, they saw it begin to open. Lando and Dash both brought their guns up, leveling them at the door –

"No!" Luke yelled, leaping forward suddenly as a familiar sensation brushed against him, "Don't shoot!"

His words seemed to echo oddly.

Then the door opened all the way to reveal Leia and Aurora standing on the other side, a blaster rifle in Leia's hands pointed directly at them.

"Leia!" Luke yelled, hoping she realized it was them. But he didn't have to worry. She was already lowering the weapon, beaming madly at them.

Before he could say another word, she had thrown herself into his arms.

He hugged her back gladly, but couldn't stop his eyes from glancing over her head at Aurora, nor could he stop the sudden leap of his pulse at seeing her.

As she met his gaze, she gave him a wry smile. "What part of 'don't come' did you not get?"

"All of it." His tone was light, but he was scanning her from head to toe, looking for injuries. There was a nasty bruise across her cheek, but otherwise she looked fine.

Leia meanwhile, was suddenly backpeddling frantically out of his arms. She held up one sleeve to her nose. "Gah, what have you been swimming in? You smell like that stuff Lando tried to feed us. And you look like it too."

"The ship broke down." Lando replied. "So we had to take a shortcut through the sewer."

Having caught a whiff of them, Aurora was staying well back, glad of an excuse not to approach Luke. "If we have to go back that way, I think I might just stay here."

"Don't worry. We have a plan." Lando informed her.

"Glad to hear somebody does." Leia said tartly, glancing back at Aurora.

"Begging your pardon, Your Highness, but perhaps you'd prefer it back in your room?" Aurora shot back.

Chewie urfed a laugh

"Okay, enough. Let's just get out of here." Luke said.

They took off again.

Luke's comlink beeped once more as they progressed down yet another wide hallway.

"Master Luke?"

"What is it now, Threepio?" He called, not bothering to detach the comlink this time.

"We appear to have caught the attention of a robotic police vessel. It seems to be following us."

"Well, lose it."

"How, Master Luke?"

"Fly like Han does." Luke suggested.

As she ran next to him, Aurora's eyes widened. "You're letting the _droids_ fly the _Falcon_? Are you crazy?"

"They're doing all right. Just a few jitters, that's all. They're really doing quite well."

"No, shut up, Artoo!" Threepio's voice suddenly burst from the comlink. "You heard what Master Luke said. I'll just loop around, whoa – yaaaahh!"

Artoo's whistles and squeals sounded even more frantic.

"Master Luke! Help! Help!"

"Threepio, what are you doing?"

Artoo was whistling so fast it sounded like one constant scream.

"I'm _trying_ to turn it right side up! Be quiet. Ahhhh!"

"Sounds as if they're upside down." Lando commented.

" 'Doing all right,' you said." Aurora said dryly. "I can't believe you let them fly the ship."

"Threepio, do what Artoo tells you! Artoo, show him how to pull out of the loop!" Luke instructed frantically.

There were more squeals from Artoo and panicked yelling from Threepio. Luke winced at what Han was going to say when he found out about this.

"Ah, that's better. We seem to have lost the pursuer, Master Luke. I believe it smashed into that walkway we flew under while we were upside down."

"I can't believe you let the droids fly the –"

Luke glared at Aurora. "Will you stop saying that?" His attention returned to the comlink. "All right, you two, get to the coordinates like I said. And be more careful."

"We're doing quite well now, Master Luke. Don't worry."

Luke cast his eyes up to the ceiling and sighed.


	32. Chapter 32

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

"So what …is ….the plan?" Leia huffed from behind him.

"We get out of here, get to the _Falcon_, and get off world as fast as we can."

Leia glared at him and then at Aurora. "You two have been spending way too much time together. You're even starting to make the same kind of plans."

Luke glanced over at Aurora. "Yeah? What was your plan?"

"To escape…and not get killed in the process."

"Hey!" Lando interjected breathlessly. "Hers is more thorough; you didn't include that last part in your plan and it's a really important part too."

"Right." Luke agreed. "We'll amend the plan to: get out of here, get to the ship, get off world, and not get killed. Better?"

"Much." Lando agreed.

"And how exactly do you plan on achieving the first part?" Leia panted.

"The droids will have the _Falcon_ here shortly." He turned his head to aim a baleful eye at Aurora before she could even open her mouth. "Threepio and Artoo can do it."

Aurora just shook her head. "Han is going to kill you."

Chewie growled an agreement from behind her.

"Listen," Lando said, "if we don't get out of here, it doesn't matter who is flying what. Come on."

"The man is right." Dash spoke up.

"Come on where?" Leia asked.

"Nobody will think we're stupid enough to go up. They'll look for us to try and leave at ground level." Luke told her.

Lando let out a laugh. "Yeah, that's the problem with our opposition – they keep thinking nobody could possibly be as stupid as we are. Fools 'em every time."

They turned through a door and headed up the stairs.

After several long minutes and several flights of stairs, they came to another door.

"Level twenty." Dash reported. "Stairs end here; we'll have to zip in and find another set."

"How many levels are in this place?" Aurora asked.

"As I recall, a hundred and two aboveground."

"Oh, man." Lando groaned. "And we have to go all the way to the roof?"

"No, there's a landing pad extending out form level fifty." Luke told him.

"That's nothing. Another thirty flights, we won't even be breathing hard." Dash commented.

"I can barely breathe now." Lando replied.

"You're getting old, Calrissian."

"Yeah, and I'd like to get a lot _older_ too."

"There should be another set of stairs across the hall and down about sixty meters." Luke interjected. "Let's move."

Lando groaned again, and Leia silently agreed. Her legs were already aching with the unaccustomed climbing and running. Chewie was managing, probably because he only had to take one step for every two of theirs, but even Dash, for all his bravado, was breathing hard. The only ones who didn't seem affected by all the running were Luke and Aurora. They both looked like they were out for a brisk summer stroll.

She glared at both of their backs.

_Page Break_

They were only halfway down the corridor when the doors to a lift opened and two people emerged; a tall, blonde-haired woman and a green-skinned alien. With cool determination, the alien turned sideways, leveled his blaster one handed, with the opposite hand on his hip, and took aim.

Luke's lightsaber was already up and moving before he had even consciously directed it, moving inward, and stopping directly in front of his face. The incoming blaster bolt hit the blade and deflected off.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was aware that the shot would have hit him right in the left eye, but he didn't really have time to dwell on it, because the alien was firing again, and once again his lightsaber was drifting almost carelessly into defense.

The blonde leapt forward and seized a chair from a side room, hurling it effortlessly down the hall at them.

"Look out!" Luke yelled uselessly, but there was nothing he could do. If he chopped at it, he'd risk taking a bolt from the alien.

Aurora stepped forward level with him and sliced down at the pinwheeling chair. Each half tumbled harmlessly to the side.

It had all happened so fast that the others hadn't had a chance to react, but they did now, opening fire over Luke and Aurora's shoulders.

The alien and the blonde woman ducked into one of the side rooms, apparently realizing that they were outgunned.

"That was Xizor." Leia yelled.

"Figures." Luke said. "Apparently he decided to save himself the bounty and just kill me himself."

"Thrifty." Aurora commented.

Suddenly a dozen guards appeared around the curve of the corridor and began firing at them.

"I think your friend called for help." Dash said to Leia.

"In there!" Lando yelled, pointing to another door. Without even consciously discussing it, Aurora turned to slice the door open with her lightsaber while Luke took care of the incoming fire, blocking and batting aside the angry energy beams. The others followed Aurora in, Luke last.

"Now what?" Leia asked when he had cleared the doorway. "It's not going to take much time for them to storm the doorway, and then we're sitting ducks."

Lando looked at Luke, who nodded. "Well," Lando explained, "it's time for desperate measures." He reached into the small backpack he was wearing and held up a small, silver ball, about the size of a fist, with a finger-wide slot ringing it.

Leia looked at it in confusion, but Aurora sucked in her breath. "Kriffing hell!"

"What?" Leia said, looking between her and Lando. "What is it?"

Dash took it carefully from Lando's hand. "It's a thermal detonator. Lando's got three of them. They run on a timer or a deadman's switch. Flip that switch right there, press that button in and hold it. If you let go without disarming the deadman's switch first, it goes off."

"And does what, exactly?" The princess asked.

"Makes a small thermonuclear fusion reaction."

"A small thermonuclear fusion reaction." She repeated in disbelief.

"Yeah, just enough to vaporize a good-size chunk of whatever is next to it."

"Which would include us, presumably?"

"Right. But we're betting your friend, the leader of Black Sun, won't want us to trigger it while he's around, not to mention what it would do to his castle."

She nodded. "Let me see it."

Dash's eyes went wide, but Luke nodded at him.

Leia took the ball, examining it closely. "And if you don't use the deadman's switch?"

"It runs on a timer. The default setting is five minutes. If you lock it in, here, once the timer starts, nobody can turn it off." Dash explained.

"Got it." She hefted the device in her hand and then tucked it into the bounty hunter's helmet that she had hooked to her belt.

The males all looked at each other.

"Uh, Leia…." Luke began.

"You said you had more of them, right? I want to hang on to this one. It might come in handy."

The males exchanged looks again, until Luke shrugged helplessly. "Okay. We bought it with your money anyway."

Aurora called from where she had been standing just out of range near the door. "The shooting's stopped."

"I guess we'd better have a little talk with Xizor." Luke said.

Lando handed him another of the detonators. He touched the controls on the side and several lights blinked on and off, and a soft beeping began.

With a deep breath, he stepped slowly out into the corridor, Aurora at his side, her lightsaber in hand but deactivated. The beeping of the detonator suddenly seemed loud in the stillness of the hallway.

From the other end, there came a shout as Xizor figured out what Luke was holding. "Don't shoot! Lower your weapons!" He yelled to his men.

"Good idea," Luke called.

The others moved out behind the two Jedi.

"You know what this is?" Luke asked the green-skinned alien.

"I have a pretty good idea." Xizor replied.

"It's rigged with a deadman's switch. If I let go…"

Xizor's face twitched, but he otherwise remained calm. "What do you want?"

"To leave. My friends and I."

"If you release the bomb, you'll die. So will your friends." He glanced significantly at Aurora next to Luke.

Luke shrugged. "As it stands, we're dead anyway. We have nothing to lose. How about you? You ready to give all this up?" He gestured around him at the costly furnishings, indicating them and by extension the entire building. "This is a Class-A thermal detonator. Do you know what that means?"

Judging from the sudden intake of breath from several of the guards and their muttered oaths, they certainly did.

"I think you're bluffing." Xizor told him.

"Only one way to find out. Your move." Luke replied calmly.

The head of Black Sun appeared to be considering it. Luke saw him glance up at the ceiling, as if calculating what exactly would happen if the bomb went off in the hallway. Luke could visualize it just as easily as he could; the floors above and below this one vaporized, the other eighty odd floors above collapsing downwards, smashing everything in their way. It wasn't a pretty thought.

Xizor lowered his weapon. "All right. Leave. Nobody will stop you."

At Luke's nod, Aurora started down the corridor towards him, followed by the all of the others except Luke. They moved past the guards, who nearly fell over themselves trying to get out of their way.

Xizor watched them move down the hall, before he turned back to face Skywalker, who still stood easily in the middle of the corridor, one hand cupped around the silvery ball.

"You've caused me a great deal of trouble."

"Can't really say I'm sorry."

"I could still shoot you."

"You could try." He held up his lightsaber and flicked it on, the brilliant green blade reflecting in the metal of the detonator.

"I could shoot one of the others. The lovely Commander Kenobi perhaps?"

Luke heard a derisive laugh from behind Xizor, and then a sudden snap hiss, and bluish-white light reflected off the walls.

"Or the Wookiee." The alien continued without missing a beat, although Luke had seen the almost imperceptible start he'd given when Aurora had flicked on her lightsaber.

"We'd all be vapor before he hit the floor. You included." Luke replied.

Behind him, the others had stopped moving. Lando reached into his pack and pulled out another detonator.

Xizor snorted. "What's the point of that? You can't blow us up twice."

Lando grinned, and without a word, opened the garbage shoot he was standing next to, pressed several controls on the detonator which caused it to beep and flash, and then tossed it down the chute.

Xizor yelled, "No!" But it was too late. They could faintly hear the detonator banging against the sides of the shaft, but it was gone quickly.

"You have five minutes to leave the building." Lando told the head of Black Sun. "If I were you I'd get moving."

Xizor spun around to face his guards. "Get to the turbolifts, get to the basement and find that device! Get it out of here!"

But the guards weren't stupid. They yelled and ran for it, nearly knocking him over in the process.

He turned back around, to vent his ire on Skywalker and the others, but they were already gone.


	33. Chapter 33

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Luke leaned back against the wall of the lift that was rapidly taking them to level fifty. He could faintly hear alarms hooting outside, so someone must have tripped an alarm. That meant there should be tons of people attempting to escape the castle, all of whom would be trying to get down. Therefore their route off level fifty should be clear. Provided that the droids could actually get the ship there….

In less than a minute the lift arrived and the doors opened. As expected, a flood of panicked beings tried to force their way on. Cursing and muttering, the six of them shoved their way free of the lift and into the corridor. There were still more beings here, frantically jamming at the lift buttons, trying to shove their way onto the already full ones, or desperately heading for the stairs.

"Must be quitting time." Dash observed laconically.

"They have four whole minutes. Better hurry." Lando said dryly.

"That's cold." Luke responded.

Lando shrugged. "They should have thought about that when they decided to go to work for Black Sun. It's a high-risk operation, being a crook."

"The landing pad should be this way." Dash informed them, heading down the corridor at a brisk trot.

They passed fewer and fewer beings, most of them having already fled.

That's why, when there came a soft noise behind them, Aurora heard it clearly. She stretched out with the Force, searching, but didn't find anything.

Making a quick decision, she slowed down, waving the others on when they looked at her. "Go ahead. I'll be right there."

"What?" Luke questioned. "Aurora-"

"I just need to check something out."

"We don't exactly have a lot of time here." Dash commented.

"I'll be right behind you."

Luke was still hesitating, studying her face, trying to figure out what she was doing.

"I'm fine; go." She told him, meeting his eyes.

He clearly didn't like it, but Leia was tugging on his arm, and the others were already moving, so reluctantly, Luke continued down the corridor.

Aurora stood in the corridor, flicking her eyes from side to side, trying to figure out what she'd heard. Her lightsaber was held loosely in her hand, and suddenly, at some internal prompting, she flicked it on.

"Behold the Jedi Knight." A voice said softly from behind her. "The figure of legend."

Aurora turned, not surprised to find Guri standing there.

"You have caused my master much misfortune. You should die for that."

Aurora didn't respond, simply watching the droid carefully. She hadn't forgotten how fast and strong Guri was.

"But," the blonde droid continued. "You have that blade and I am unarmed." She held empty hands away from her sides.

Aurora swiftly calculated the time in her head. Three minutes. The smart thing to do would be to simply cut her down and follow the others. Or at least, to herd her at lightsaber's point into one of the siderooms and get her out of the way. But, was that a Jedi thing to do? Han would make a quip about smart and Jedi being an oxymoron, and maybe he'd be right, because there was something about Guri that tugged at her mind. She didn't seem intrinsically _bad_. After all, here she was, risking her own existence out of loyalty to her master. Wouldn't Artoo do the same for Luke? Granted, her master was a psychopath, but that wasn't Guri's fault.

Coming to a swift decision (after all, why start doing the smart thing now?) she turned off her lightsaber and hooked it at her back again.

"What do you want?"

"That test." Guri returned, referring to the conversation they'd had in Aurora's room.

"_Now?_" Aurora asked incredulously. "This building is going to blow to pieces in three minutes and you want to play games?"

"It won't take that long. Are you afraid to die, Jedi?"

Well, of course she was. Who wasn't? But even as the thought formed in her head, she suddenly realized that it wasn't entirely true. The Force was with her; she could feel it, and with that knowledge came a certain understanding. Whatever happened, happened. It was that simple.

Guri leapt at her –

As before, she was impossibly fast. Aurora never would have been able to dodge her blow, but the Force was with her, and with little effort, she stepped to the side and kicked out at the droid as she flew past. Her foot connected with Guri's hip and the droid stumbled sideways; off balance, but not down.

"Good." Guri said, a faint smile appearing on her face.

Glad someone was enjoying this. The droid was supernaturally fast; only by submerging herself into the Force was she going to be able to match her.

Guri circled, looking for an opening, but Aurora kept her guard up, ready for her.

And then from behind them came a loud scream. "Aurora!"

Aurora flicked a quick glance back towards Leia's voice and it was enough to distract her. Guri didn't hesitate to take advantage of the opening. She took one long step and punched.

Aurora tried to back out of range, but wasn't fast enough; Guri's fist connected with her stomach hard. It doubled her over, but she still managed to dodge the elbow that came after it. Barely. She had to dive away and roll, but she came up with her hands raised…and the knowledge that she had lost contact with the Force.

Swearing internally, she saw Guri come at her again in a blur.

The flat of her hand slammed into Aurora's head, next to her ear, and she went down on one knee, dazed.

She shook her head, trying to clear it; aware that if she didn't do something fast, Guri was going to kill her.

_The Force. Let it work for you, Aurora._

Her father's voice came as if from a great distance, much as it had in the trench on the Death Star. She could vaguely hear the others yelling, and sense Luke running towards her.

She needed to get this under control or he was going get himself killed trying to save her.

Taking a deep breath, she centered herself, stretching out to the Force-

Above her she could see Guri, smiling, her hand formed into a flat blade, swinging down towards her throat-

She blew out the breath, and with it, her fear. She had to trust in the Force completely, no hesitation.

Time seemed to slow as Guri's hand came down, moving slowly, as if through water.

Aurora had all the time in the universe to roll to the side and stand.

She felt as if she was moving normally, but the feel of the air whooshing past her and the sound of it in her ears was off.

She came up on her feet, pivoted, and shoved down at Guri's descending hand, pushing it aside. Still moving in that odd sensation of slowness, she swung her left leg, sweeping it behind the droid's ankles, taking her feet out from under her.

The droid fell, slowly, seeming to almost float down to the floor, landing on her back –

Time sped up suddenly and her friends' voices were still echoing down the hall-

Guri hit the floor so hard that it shook the corridor.

Stunned slightly, Aurora pulled her lightsaber. It was too dangerous to continue this game; the droid was too dangerous to leave alive.

She lifted the blade –

Lying on her back on the floor where she had landed, Guri managed a smile. "You won fairly. Go ahead."

Aurora hesitated. _She would have killed you._

That sense of time stilling came again, stretching the moment out endlessly.

Suddenly, Aurora lowered the blade, turning it off. "No. Come with us. We can have you reprogrammed."

Guri sat up, surprise showing faintly on her face. "No, if they can find a way around my brainblock, if somehow my memory is downloaded, it will be fatal for me – and my master. We have too much to answer for. Better to kill me now."

Aurora shook her head. "It's not your fault. You didn't program yourself."

"I am what I am, Jedi. I don't think there can be any salvation for me."

"Aurora! Come on!" She turned slightly at Leia's shout, surprised to realize Luke was standing in the corridor, halfway between them, his lightsaber in hand.

She turned back to Guri and met the droid's eyes. "There's been enough killing. I'm not adding to it today."

For a moment, the droid's face softened.

Aurora nodded, and then spun on her heel, meeting Luke's eyes briefly before passing him.

Leia stood motionless in the hallway, one hand pressed to her throat, where she could still feel the echo of her scream.

She'd been running flat out with the others when Aurora had suddenly slowed to a stop, waving the rest of them on. Luke had objected, but the redhead had insisted they keep going.

Feeling slightly annoyed, Leia had continued on, not realizing what was happening until Luke had skidded to a stop next to her with a vicious curse, something she had never heard pass his lips before.

Turning to follow his gaze, she'd spotted Aurora standing back down the corridor, facing Zizor's HRD.

Even as they'd watched, Aurora had turned off her lightsaber and attached it to her belt.

Almost instantly, Guri had launched herself at the other woman. But before Leia could release the air she had drawn in in a scream, the young Jedi had slid aside, like water flowing around an obstacle, and kicked out, knocking the droid to the side.

Guri was smiling, circling Aurora.

Next to her, Leia could feel Luke holding himself back with an effort, every muscle tensed.

"Aurora!" The scream that had bunched in her throat suddenly came loose.

Leia saw Aurora turn her head and almost instantly, Guri reacted, her fist sinking into Aurora's stomach.

They were too far away to hear anything, but Aurora suddenly bent double, her face contorting in obvious pain. She still managed to avoid the elbow that swung out at her, but her movements were jerky, not as smooth as they had been. Something was obviously wrong.

Guri connected again, this time with the side of her head, and Aurora dropped to one knee, shaking her head dazedly.

Luke swore again, and took off towards the two combatants, his lightsaber already in hand. Suddenly though, he slowed to a stop, an odd expression crossing his face.

Leia wanted to scream at him to hurry up, that the droid was going to kill Aurora, Guri was swinging again, a flat handed chop down at Aurora's unprotected throat.

Abruptly though, Aurora was moving, too fast for the eye to even follow. She was just suddenly on her feet, one hand shoving Guri's to the side. She swept her leg and the droid flew up in the air and then crashed into the floor with a thud that Leia could feel even where she stood.

With a grim look, Aurora's lightsaber appeared in her hand, the blue-white of the blade throwing harsh shadows over the droid's stunned face.

Remaining flat on the floor, the droid said something to Aurora; something which caused the young Jedi to hesitate, her lightsaber not moving.

Behind them, Luke was still standing motionless, watching the drama unfold in front of him.

To Leia's shock, Aurora shut off her lightsaber and held out a hand to the downed droid.

"What the hell is she doing?" Dash demanded from behind Leia.

"Something Jedi-ish." Lando sighed. "You'll get used to it."

Guri's face flickered with surprise and confusion and she said something again.

Aurora shook her head, responded.

The droid sat up, but didn't accept the proffered hand. She spoke once more, and whatever she said had Aurora retracting her hand and stepping back, but she didn't reignite her lightsaber.

Irritated and impatient, Leia suddenly called out, "Aurora! Come on!"

She saw Aurora glance at her, but she turned once more to the HRD and spoke, before turning on her heel and jogging back up the corridor. She and Luke exchanged a glance, but Leia couldn't tell exactly what it meant.

When the two Jedi caught up to them, the group took off again for the landing pad.

"What the hell was that all about?" Leia demanded.

"Nothing." Aurora replied.

"Nothing?" Dash said. "Looks like she tried to kill you."

"She did. But it wasn't personal."

"But –"

Luke cut him off. "Never mind." He said shortly.

Leia gave him a swift glance. He sounded slightly ticked off, but she couldn't tell at whom.

Aurora didn't need to look at Luke to tell he was mad, and she could tell who exactly it was directed at, but now was not the time to get into it. However, she had a feeling that once they were safely on the _Falcon_, Luke was going to have a few choice things to say to her.

Luke, for his part, was seething inside. He still hadn't entirely recovered from the terror that had torn through him when he'd seen Aurora on her knees in front of the droid and realized that she had lost contact with the Force. He'd known, even as he was running towards them, that he was going to be too late and the sense of panic and fear was overwhelming.

That slim hand was descending impossibly fast and Aurora wasn't going to be able to stop it from crashing into her throat, crushing her larynx and possibly her spine in the process.

Then he too had felt the touch of the Force and heard Ben's voice. Time had slowed, as had his footsteps.

The sense of relief he'd felt was indescribable when he'd felt the Force suddenly surge up again in the kneeling figure and he'd realized he wasn't going to lose her this time.

Of course, now that it was all over, reaction was setting in, and the realization of just how much danger Aurora had been in; how much she had _put_ herself in, was coming to the fore and bringing with it a towering fury.

_How dare she!_

That he was being completely and absolutely hypocritical didn't once enter his mind. Only the realization that they had maybe three minutes to get out of there before the entire building vaporized was keeping him from tearing into her right then and there.


	34. Chapter 34

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

They burst out onto the landing platform into suddenly cold air, six pairs of eyes automatically lifting to the sky, searching for their rescue.

Dash was the first to spot it.

"Mother of Madness!" he screamed, pointing.

The _Falcon_ was coming, way too fast and spinning like a children's top.

It wobbled, straightened out, but didn't shed any speed.

"Duck!" Lando yelled, dropping to the ground.

The others followed suit instantly, everyone hugging the gritty surface of the landing pad.

The ship roared overhead, coming within a meter of the deck, before veering sharply to starboard.

The wind from its passage tugged at their hair and clothing.

Luke squinted his eyes against the backwash, trying to spot the ship.

The _Falcon_ tilted and its port edge hit a Doppler sensor array, shattering it instantly and spraying shrapnel everywhere, including on them.

"Threepio! I'm going to kill you!" Lando roared from his prone position.

Luke came to his feet, reaching for his comlink, as the ship circled.

"Threepio, cut your drives! Bring it in on repulsors only! And hurry!"

"I'm trying, Master Luke! The controls are somewhat sensitive."

Like a startled mynock, the ship suddenly hopped straight up a hundred meters.

Artoo's frantic whistles were screaming out of the comlink.

The ship lurched sideways, tilted back the other way, then suddenly dropped like a stone straight towards the landing pad.

As one person, the six dove out of its way, but the ship managed to catch itself before it hit the roof and bounced upwards again.

It settled again, and then slowly stopped, floating gently downwards, only to come to a stop, hovering in place fifty meters above them.

Luke swore softly. Fifty meters, fifty thousand, it didn't matter. It was still too high.

"Bring it down, you fool droid!" Lando screamed. They had less than a minute left.

"Too bad Leebo isn't at the controls. He's a pretty good pilot." Dash commented.

"While you're wishing, wish that _we_ were at the controls!" Leia retorted.

Luke glanced around frantically. There weren't any other ships on the landing pad. There may have been, but once the alarms had sounded, everyone had probably piled into whatever they could.

His eye caught on what looked like two pairs of folded wings lying almost hidden in the shadows near the corridor entrance. Realization dawned. They were paragliders. You could slip on a pair and glide to a nearby rooftop. He glanced up at the hovering _Falcon_. If Threepio didn't manage to land it in the next few seconds, he was going to throw Aurora and Leia into one set and toss them off the building. The rest of them could take the other. They'd be way too heavy, but it was better than waiting for the building to blow up under them. Besides, he'd managed to slow his own fall from the walker on Hoth and he'd learned even more on Dagobah. He could probably slow their fall enough to keep them from being killed –

Dash's shout interrupted his thoughts.

"Here she comes!"

The _Falcon_ drifted down towards them, hovering about two meters up, then suddenly dropped. The landing struts groaned in protest, but they held as the ship landed. The belly hatch opened wide, golden light from the hold beckoning like salvation.

"Go, go, go!" Luke yelled.

Chewie didn't waste any time. Grabbing Leia, he picked her up like a stuffed toy and ran for the ship, Lando and Dash right behind them.

Not taking any chances, Luke grabbed Aurora's hand and bolted after them, counting in his head.

The ramp was already closing before they had even made it into the ship.

_Thirty seconds…_

There was a mad dash for the cockpit.

_Twenty seconds…._

Dash was in the lead, and he dove for the pilot's seat, already yelling at Threepio. "Move!"

"I'm moving, I'm moving!" The golden droid protested.

_Ten seconds…._

Dash gave him a shove to help him on his way, and dropped into the seat, hands already on the controls.

Threepio fell into a heap against the copilot's seat. "You don't need to be so rude, Master Dash!"

_Zero._

From underneath them there came a sudden deep rumbling and the ship shuddered slightly.

"Come on, Dash!" Lando yelled.

Luke glanced out the viewport, watching for the first signs of collapse. Something caught his eye, and even as the building began to shake noticeably, he realized that one of the pair of paragliders he had spotted earlier was gone.

The building shook harder, cracks appearing in the surface of the landing pad and zigzagging towards them.

The ship lurched, tilted, started to slide….rose…everyone in the cockpit except for Dash, stumbled to the side.

"Go, go!" Leia screamed, clinging to the navigator's seat.

The _Falcon_ lifted away…

Beneath them, the building was quaking like a bowl of porridge. The cracks had grown and chunks of permacrete were dropping away. Suddenly, the entire tower wobbled and then collapsed straight down, like an undercooked soufflé, the bottom dropped out and the top layers fell. Clouds of smoke were billowing upward, and flames were shooting up. Multicolored burst of sparks sprayed into the air like misplaced fireworks from where electrical conduits were ripped apart.

The noise was horrendous. Building materials were ripping apart with almost ultrasonic screeches and explosions were rocking the air, sending chunks of permacrete and durasteel into the air.

The ship was already rocking under the impacts against its shields.

Dash hit the thrusters and the ship shot away as if fired from a sling.

Once again, those in the cockpit were tumbled off their feet.

Chewie caught Leia, and Lando clawed for the back of the copilot's seat, but Luke and Aurora crashed into the back of the cockpit in a tumbled heap.

Below them, the castle of Prince Xizor, Underlord of Black Sun, collapsed into a flaming, smoking ruin.

Silence filled the cockpit as the ship climbed for safety.

"That was close." Dash said laconically, wiping sweat from his brow.

"A little too close." Lando muttered darkly, releasing his death grip on the seat, "But I guess your plan worked, huh, Luke?"

He glanced back, expecting an answer, and couldn't fight the grin that burst onto his face at the sight that met his eyes.

With nothing to hang onto during their abrupt departure, Luke and Aurora had been flung backwards with the force of the ship's velocity.

Chivalrous as always, Luke had managed to twist enough so that he hit the back wall first, hard enough to have him seeing stars. Especially when Aurora's full weight had hit him, and they'd both dropped to the deck. This time Aurora had landed first, with Luke on top of her. Stunned by her abrupt impact with Luke and then the floor, Aurora lay there for a moment, light bursting behind her eyelids while she tried to get her bearings.

She was aware of Luke's weight on top of her, and his warm breath against her neck, but couldn't quite focus enough to react to it. All of the air had been knocked out of her lungs, and she was concentrating on trying to get a breath.

Luke too had been stunned by the fall, and as a result, they were both still laying there unmoving, when Lando spoke.

Seeing their compromising position, he couldn't resist. "I know we'd all like to celebrate surviving, but do you think you two could at least wait 'til you're alone?"

Chewie urrfed out a laugh and Dash glanced over his shoulder, with his brows raised.

A plaintive "Ow," was heard from Luke, while Aurora simply wheezed.

Finally, Luke recovered enough to flop over on his back, groaning.

"I agree." Aurora said, raising herself up on her elbows. "Not one of our more dignified escapes."

"Oh, I don't know, I bet you cushioned his fall pretty nicely, right, Skywalker?" Dash leered.

Aurora rolled her eyes, but she couldn't stop herself from glancing at Luke out of the corner of her eye. He was smiling easily, but there had been a flicker of something in his face that sent a shiver up her spine.

"Sure, right after she dented my spine slamming me into the wall." Luke replied.

Aurora shot him a dirty look. "I'd hit you, but I hurt too much."

Leia seated herself in the navigator's seat, ignoring the giddy byplay. "Can we get out of here now?"

"Absolutely." Luke said, sitting up. "Nothing fancy, just run as fast as we can."

"I hear you." Dash replied.

Threepio, still lying wedged between the two seats, suddenly spoke up. "I thought I flew rather well."

As one person, they all turned to stare at the droid.

"But, I don't think I would like to do it again anytime soon." He concluded thoughtfully.

The laughter that filled the cockpit was only slightly tinged with hysterical relief.


	35. Chapter 35

Xizor was beyond furious. It was a hot, bubbling rage that filled him, blotting out rational thought. Only once before, when his family had been destroyed, had he felt like this.

Everything in his castle had been destroyed; his belongings, priceless artifacts, his business files, his _personal_ files, all of it. Gone in an instant.

He himself had only barely made it onto his personal shuttle, and he hadn't seen Guri since that debacle in the corridor with Skywalker.

_Skywalker_.

Just the name filled him with seething rage. The Jedi was responsible for all of this.

Not just the loss of his things, but the blow to his reputation was unforgiveable.

The boy was going to pay.

He was heading now to his personal skyhook, revenge already forming in his head.

As he'd escaped the collapsing building, he'd spotted a small Corellian freighter and realized that is was the notorious _Millennium Falcon_ that his people had been searching for. It's presence in this vicinity could only mean that it had been attempting to rescue Skywalker, the princess, and their friends. It was possible that it had failed, but he wasn't willing to take that chance. Not with the way things had been going lately.

That was why he had called ahead to the commander of his personal navy and described the ship in detail. "There is a dilemma-saucer-style Corellian freighter leaving the planet shortly. It is a YT-Thirteen Hundred, a little over twenty-five meters long, a hundred-ton capacity. Locate it and destroy it. If you can disable it and capture the crew and passengers, that would also be acceptable.

"If, however, it gets past, you and anybody else I consider responsible will be fertilizer before the next sunrise – are we perfectly clear on that?"

"Clear, my prince."

"Good." He reached for the comm. switch to shut off the transmission. "I've got you now, Skywalker."

The click of the switch under his fingers felt particularly satisfying.

_Page Break_

"My lord Vader, you asked to see anything regarding this name." The officer contacting him said.

Vader stared at the man and then took the printout flimsy from him, reading the information there.

"Where did this originate?"

"An encoded transmission from the ship _Virago_, my lord, en route to the skyhook _Falleen's Fist_ in high orbit. The ship is registered to-"

"I know who it is registered to." Vader cut him off. One massive fist clenched, crushing the flimsy. "Prepare my shuttle." Vader ordered.

And underneath his concealing black mask, the Dark Lord of the Sith smiled.

_Page Break_

"Take over, would you, Luke?" Dash said standing up.

"Sure," Luke replied, shifting the controls to the copilots' seat where he was sitting. "Where are you going?"

"No where. I just need to whistle up my steed."

"What?" Luke asked, frowning in confusion.

Dash pulled a small black box from his belt and held it up. "Long-range shielded single-channel comlink. Time to have Leebo lift and put my ship into orbit. We can rendezvous; I can borrow one of your suits- this bucket still has vac-suits, doesn't it? – and get back to a real ship instead of this rickety crate."

Luke ignored the insult and smiled. "I guess we can do that."

"After that, you go your way, I'll go mine. I figure the cleanup bill for that building down there ought to go a long way to balancing my account with the Empire."

Luke glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. "You really ought to consider signing on with the Alliance. You're a good man and we could use you."

"Thanks, Luke, but I don't think so. I'm not much of a joiner." But a smirk appeared on his face as Aurora entered the cockpit. "However, if you maybe ordered your XO to offer me certain _incentives_, I might change my mind."

She rolled her eyes in response. "You wouldn't be much good to us after I strangled you with your own tongue, Rendar."

Dash just winked at her and tapped the command button on his comlink. "Hey, Leebo, you rust bucket, get your gears meshing, and meet me at the following coordinates."

"My master is not in at the moment. Who is calling, please?" A mechanical voice came back over the link.

"Very funny." Dash retorted. He looked at Luke. "Never buy a droid programmed by a failed comedian."

With another smirk, he slid past Aurora on his way out of the cockpit, making certain to press up against her in the process.

Luke didn't have to hear Dash's muffled grunt to know that Aurora had retaliated in some way, probably an elbow to the gut.

An irritated scowl on her face, she dropped into the pilot's seat next to him, muttering insults under her breath.

"I think he likes you." Luke couldn't resist.

_Page Break_

Xizor's arrival on his skyhook was uneventful. He immediately disembarked from his shuttle and headed to the command center.

As soon as he entered, a holoproj of his commander appeared.

"Have you deployed your vessels, Commander?"

"Yes, Highness. Our sensors have been set to detect any ship matching the criteria you gave me. If it comes this way, we will spot it."

"Good. Keep me informed." Xizor ended the call and turned his gaze to the transparisteel window that gave him a 360-degree view of the space surrounding the skyhook.

Soon, they would come and he would have them, and then they would learn that to contend with Xizor was to lose.

_Page Break_

"Thanks for the ride." Dash said over the comm.

A short while ago, he had transferred over to the _Outrider_, which now hung off their port bow.

"Want to race to the jump spot?" Luke asked, smiling.

Next to him, Aurora snorted and he heard a muttered, "Boys," from where Leia was sitting behind her.

Dash laughed. "You want a parsec head start?"

"No, I –" Before Luke could finish the sentence, a blaze of green light shot through the space between the two ships.

"What the hell –" Lando exclaimed, rising up from his seat.

"Somebody's shooting at us." Luke answered grimly, as more laser blasts burst around them.

He punched the throttle, the _Falcon_ jumping like a startled whomp rat.

"Of course they are." Lando said resignedly.

"We've got an unmarked corvette coming in at two-seventy." Aurora informed them, reading the scopes. "And four fighters at three-five-nine!"

"Those aren't Imperial ships!" Lando yelled, reading over her shoulder. "Who are these guys?"

"Who cares!" Luke replied, "We've got to move!" The ship shook as a blast just missed them. "Aurora, Chewie, the guns!"

"You heard the man, furball." Aurora replied, already heading out the door. "You want dorsal or ventral?"

Chewie's reply was lost as they disappeared down the corridor.

Lando moved into the co-pilot's seat.

"Good luck, Dash!" Luke called into the comm.

"You, too, Luke!"

Luke pointed the ship into deep space and prepared to run for it. Another shudder shook the ship, this time from a laser actually connecting with the shields.

They needed to get clear of the system and get into deep space, fast, so that they could make the jump to lightspeed.

_Page Break_

"Prince Xizor, we have located the Corellian freighter." His commander's voice came from the holoproj.

"And…?"

"And we are engaging it now. It should be destroyed momentarily."

"Don't be too sure, Commander. They seem to be extremely lucky."

"They'll need more than luck, my prince. We have them completely surrounded. They'll need a miracle."

Xizor smiled.

_Page Break_

"They've formed a wall between us and where we need to go." Luke said grimly.

"So find another way." Lando replied. "You want me to fly her?"

"No."

The ship rocked again under another blast.

"I thought you two were supposed to be shooting back!" Lando yelled into the comlink.

Luke was too busy flying to hear Aurora and Chewie's replies, but they both sounded profane. He sent the _Falcon_ into a steep climb, then twisted into a steep arc at the top that sent them back the way they had just come.

"Chewie wants to know how he's supposed to hit anything with you looping like that." Lando commented.

"How can he miss? We're surrounded! He should hit something no matter where he shoots."

A dark shape shot past them, cannons blazing like fury. The _Outrider_, firing its mechanized guns relentlessly.

Ahead of them, a fighter exploded.

"See how it's done, Chewie." Lando said.

Chewie snarled back at him.

_Page Break_

"Have you stopped the ship yet, Commander?"

"Not yet, Highness. They are, ah, quite skilled. And there are two ships returning our fire. We don't have a transponder signal on the other one, but it is heavily armed."

"If my navy can't defeat two ships it certainly needs another commander." Xizor warned.

"We will defeat them. Our net is closing. They are running out of room."

_Page Break_

The attacking ships had formed into a rough circle in space, which enclosed not just the _Falcon _ and the _Outrider_, but an awful lot of civilian traffic as well. Luke was having to twist and turn to avoid those as well as the fire from the fighters. He'd considered using them as shields, but when a random shot from one of the attackers hit a passenger ship, he ruled it out. These guys obviously weren't worried about collateral damage.

"Lousy shots." Lando commented. "Don't care who they hit."

Luke nodded. They were boxed. He could twist and weave for a while, but the circle was steadily closing in on them and shortly he wasn't going to have any room to maneuver.

Things weren't looking too great.

Suddenly, one of the attackers came straight at them, cannons blazing beams of death at them – and then it abruptly exploded in a burst of bright light and metal shards.

"Good shot!" Luke yelled into the comlink. "Who got it? Was that you, Aurora?"

"Not me," Her voice came back, sounding strained. "I've got plenty to worry about coming in from my side. Must have been Chewie."

But the Wookiee harned a negative.

Lando blinked in confusion. "Then who did?"

Suddenly a familiar voice crackled over the comm. "Hey, Luke! Okay if we join your party?"

"Wedge! What are you doing here?"

"Waiting for you. Dash's droid sent us a distress signal. Sorry it took so long to get here." His words were punctuated by another fighter blowing up.

"Well, just don't let it happen again." Luke replied, a grin exploding across his face.

Now, these were much better odds. Let's see how these jokers did against Rogue Squadron.


	36. Chapter 36

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

"There seems to be a slight problem, my prince." The commander said.

Xizor, who had been watching the distant flashes of weapons and explosions, frowned. "So I noticed. Why are your ships blowing up, Commander?"

"A squadron of X-wing fighters has joined the fray. No more than a dozen of them. It will merely…delay the inevitable."

"Are you certain, Commander?"

"We still outnumber them twenty to one, Highness. And our frigates are standing by in case they get past the corvettes and fighters. They cannot escape."

"Hope that you are right, Commander."

_Page Break_

The _Falcon _went into a stomach-tightening dive at almost a ninety-degree angle to their previous path, causing Leia to clutch at her seat involuntarily. Three fighters stayed with them, firing continuously

Rogue Squadron was helping out tremendously, but they were still losing the fight. The space around them was simply too crowded.

The comm. was nearly overwhelmed with voices.

"I got 'em, Luke." Wedge called.

"No, let me." Dash replied.

To their port side, another fighter blew up.

"That one was mine." Aurora's voice came through calmly. "You figured out who these guys are?"

"Not yet." Luke replied.

"Bet you a credit they're Xizor's."

Leia sucked in a breath while Luke and Lando exchanged glances. That certainly made sense.

"Man, this guy _really_ doesn't like to lose." Lando commented. "What did you two ladies do to him?"

"Leia turned him down." Aurora said.

"And then you dropped a thermal detonator down his garbage chute." Leia added dryly.

"Oh, yeah." Lando smirked, returning his gaze to the scopes. "Two coming in at one-fifty!"

Luke hit the thrusters and the _Falcon _rocketed away in a steep turn.

"What are you _doing_ up there?" Aurora yelled.

"Giving you the perfect setup shot!" Luke yelled back.

_Page Break_

Vader paced the bridge of the _Executor_, hands clasped behind his cloaked back.

"How long before we can get around the planet?"

"A few minutes, my lord." His commander replied nervously.

"As soon as we come within range, establish communications with the skyhook _Falleen's Fist_. I will speak with Prince Xizor." He would follow the Emperor's orders faultlessly, so that there would be no room for complaint.

"Of course, my lord."

_Page Break_

"I think we got problems, buddy." Dash's voice came through the comlink calmly, but resigned.

Luke nodded. "Wedge?"

"I'm afraid he's right, Luke. These guys are only so-so pilots, but there are a lot of 'em. I figure we're still outnumbered fifteen to one and there are a couple of frigates who are just sitting there, waiting. We don't have room to run, don't have room to maneuver. They're closing us in and they don't care if they kill civilian ships, either."

Luke sighed and ran one hand through his hair. "Yeah." He took a deep breath. "Well, I guess all we can do is take as many of them with us as we can. Unless anybody wants to surrender?"

Derisive laughs came over the comlink.

"That's what I thought. May the Force be with you."

Luke flew as he had never flown before, not even on the Death Star. He rolled, weaved, stalled, twisted, dove, and threw power turns that came close to blacking them all out. It was superb flying and he had the Force to help him. He was instinctively flying so as to give Aurora, in the dorsal turret, the best shots, and she wasn't disappointing him, but they were still losing.

It was only a matter of time.

_Page Break_

"Prince Xizor, we are staring to pick them off. Three of the X-wings have been destroyed or disabled. Our net is closing in. It will be only a matter of time."

Xizor nodded. _Finally._

_Page Break_

"Coming within range, Lord Vader."

"Good. Deploy your fighters."

_Page Break_

Aurora tracked the incoming fighter, leading it, fired and missed as it swooped sideways and then shot past.

However, there were more behind it, and she kept her finger on the trigger, raking the second fighter with lances of energy. She saw them penetrate the wing of the fighter, which promptly blew apart, sending the fighter into a spiraling, out of control dive.

But there were more behind that one, and they were down to nine or ten X-wings, plus themselves and the _Outrider._

She didn't even have time to mourn her friends. She was too busy shooting.

Luke was flying amazingly, but there were simply too many enemy ships.

It looked like Xizor was going to win after all.

She gritted her teeth and fired again as another fighter shot past. The pilot tried to twist, but Aurora had anticipated the move, and kept up her blast, shredding the rear of the ship. Smoking violently, it arced downwards out of sight.

Just then, something strange caught her attention, and she peered out of the viewport, staring at something in the distance.

_Oh, shavit!_

_Page Break_

When he saw the TIE fighters screaming towards them, Luke wasn't even surprised. It had only been a question of when, not if, the Empire responded to the violent battle going on in their space. There were a dozen fighters, at least.

"Uh oh." Lando said.

"Yeah. I wondered what was keeping them." Luke replied grimly. "I guess the universe decided we needed extra help getting killed."

He kept his gaze on space, desperately searching for a way out of the box they were in. But there was no where to go. There were simply too many ships packed in around them.

He took a deep breath –

Saw the TIEs streak towards them. Watched them fire –

On the unmarked attackers?

"Huh?" Lando said dumbly.

"Luke," Aurora's voice sounded stunned. "I just saw –"

"I know, I know. What the hell is going on?"

_Page Break_

Xizor could clearly hear the panic in his commander's voice as he called through the comm. "Highness, we're being attacked by the Imperial Navy!"

A communication tech began waving frantically, trying to get the Falleen's attention.

Xizor glared at him. "This had better be good. Your life hangs in the balance."

"It – It's Lord Vader. He wants to speak to you."

"Put him on." Xizor said grimly.

Vader's image swirled into place on the holoproj.

Xizor went on the attack immediately, not bothering to maintain his usual polite façade.

"Lord Vader! Why is the Navy attacking my ships?"

Vader paused before replying. "Because the ships, under your orders, are engaging in criminal activity."

"Nonsense! My ships are trying to stop a Rebel traitor who destroyed my castle!"

Vader paused again. "You have two standard minutes to recall your vessels and to offer yourself into my custody."

Heated rage exploded throughout Xizor. "I will not! I will take this up with the Emperor."

"The Emperor is not here. _I _speak for the Empire, Xizor."

"_Prince_ Xizor." The Falleen hissed.

"You may keep the title – for another two minutes."

Xizor forced a confident smile onto his face. "What are you going to do, Vader? Destroy my skyhook? You wouldn't dare. The Emperor –"

Vader cut him off abruptly. "I warned you to stay away from Skywalker. Recall your ships and surrender into my custody or pay the consequences. I will risk the Emperor's displeasure." There was another pause and it was clear that Vader was enjoying the moment. "However, _you_ will not be there to see it, this time."

For the first time in a long time, Xizor felt fear. He stared at the space where Vader's image had just winked out. Would he do it? Would even Vader risk disobeying the Emperor in order to get revenge on a rival?

He had less than two minutes before he found out.

What should he do?


	37. Chapter 37

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

"Luke, look out!" Lando screamed.

"I see him." Luke replied, sending the _Falcon _into a steep climb before peeling off to starboard to avoid the other ships that were pelting in from that angle. Flashes of light registered at the corner of his eyes, followed by a larger blossom of brightness, marking the demise of another ship.

There were so many ships boiling around in the confined space, firing on each other, that there were almost continuous flashes of laser fire. The _Falcon_ was shaking almost constantly from near misses, many of which hadn't even been aimed at them.

Under his feet, he could feel the deck plates thrumming with the regular firing of the ship's guns as Aurora and Chewie strafed incoming ships.

As he watched, a TIE fighter chased after one of the unmarked fighters and brought it down. He couldn't figure out why.

"What are they doing? They're on the same side, aren't they?" He said, half to himself.

"Don't question miracles and thank your lucky stars for small favors. If they're shooting at each other, they aren't shooting at _us_." Lando replied. "Look out!"

Luke zigged then zagged and missed the incoming ship by centimeters.

In the midst of this, he suddenly felt a familiar disturbance in the Force.

"Oh, shavit!" He swore under his breath. _Vader._

No time to worry about that now. He'd wonder what the hell Vader was up to later- if there was a later.

_Page Break_

Vader kept his eyes on the chronometer as he listened in on the decoded communication from Xizor's commander.

"My prince, we are being destroyed by the attackers! We are outnumbered and being slaughtered! I need permission to offer our surrender! Highness?"

Not much time left for the Dark Prince now.

Seven seconds…six seconds…five…

"Prince Xizor, please respond! We must surrender or we will be blown to pieces! Please!"

…four seconds…three seconds….

"Highness, I –" The commander's voice abruptly cut off. He must have been killed. Vader couldn't really find it in himself to care.

…two…one –

"Commander, destroy the skyhook."

"Yes, my lord." The reply came instantly. One didn't hesitate or question an order in the presence of the Dark Lord of the Sith.

Vader smiled under the concealing helmet, took a deep breath and then let it out slowly in anticipation.

_Goodbye, Xizor. And good riddance._

_Page Break_

It was sheer luck that had the _Falcon_ facing it when it the skyhook abruptly exploded.

A strong beam of light shot out of the _Executor_ and pierced the skyhook. Almost instantly it shattered; exploding into millions of pieces in an incandescent burst of light that rivaled a supernova for a moment, then faded into sullenly glowing pieces.

Silence filled the comm. as everyone tried to grasp what had just happened.

"Oh, man." Lando said softly. "They must have made somebody real mad."

Luke could only shake his head in disbelief, shaken by the sight.

"Luke, get us the hell out of here." Aurora's voice came desperately from the comm. "_Now!_"

"Heads up, boys. You heard the lady. Follow me." Dash cut in.

Luke blinked. "Huh?"

"Somebody just opened us an escape hatch."

Luke glanced at the glowing remains of the skyhook. It was starting to separate slightly, but it was still packed together densely. A flaming, jagged mass of death. "Are you crazy? You can't fly thought that wreckage!"

"We don't have a choice. There are ships everywhere. What's the matter, kid? Don't think you can do it?" Dash challenged.

"If you can, my _droid_ can." Luke shot back, his eyes still on the debris.

"Luke, no! It's too dangerous." Leia gasped, grabbing the back of his seat.

But he ignored her. He understood what Dash meant. It would be incredibly tricky and very, very dangerous, but the space around the decimated planetoid was relatively clear in comparison to the ship-filled space they currently occupied, as the chunks were expanding outward. If they could avoid hitting anything, it was their best chance to get out of here.

"Yeeeehawww!" Somebody in Rogue Squadron yelled enthusiastically.

Luke should have reprimanded them for the unprofessional comment, but he understood how whoever it was felt. Just seconds before, they'd been preparing for their own deaths. Now there was a chance they would actually survive this, and they'd do it by some of the most challenging flying he'd ever seen.

He laughed and headed for the wreckage. Looks like the good guys were going to win after all.

Suddenly though, his danger sense flared and he heard Lando yell, "_Look out, Dash!"_

He saw it immediately; a gigantic chunk of the skyhook the size of a resiplex was heading right for the _Outrider_.

"Dash!" Luke yelled, but it was too late. The shattered block of planetoid was just too close to avoid.

There was a bright flare of light that forced Luke to turn his face. Next to him Lando threw up one arm to shield his eyes. When he lowered it, the _Outrider_ was gone.

"Oh, man," Lando whispered. "He – he's…gone."

Leia pressed her hands to her eyes, feeling a sense of loss that she was only too familiar with.

Any sense of triumph that Luke had felt was gone, turned to bitter ashes in his mouth. But there wasn't time to worry about it now. Grimly, he gripped the controls tighter.

"Brace yourselves. This is going to be rough!"

Chunks of debris rushed at them, seeming to purposely try to hit them. Flashes of light began to appear to the front and sides of the ship. Luke realized that Aurora and Chewie were firing at the wreckage, trying to clear it away somewhat.

The other ships followed in their wake, allowing the larger _Falcon _toblaze a path.

Luke wanted to take a moment to mourn for Dash's death, after all the other man had turned out to be pretty okay, but he simply didn't have time. It was up to him to get them all out of this alive.

He let the Force take him and he flew.

_Page Break_

The secret Alliance base they were heading for was light years away from Coruscant. It was going to take them a while to get there, but get there they would. For now though, they were all sitting in the main hold, decompressing from the stressful events they had all just gone through and discussing the implications.

Chewie expressed his disbelief at the actions of the Imperial Navy. As much as they hated to admit it, the Empire had saved their butts.

"Well," Lando said, considering the bottle of lum he held in his hand. "I heard Vader never did like Xizor. They were kind of rivals for the Emperor's attention. Maybe he just saw this as a way to remove an impediment."

"What I want to know," Leia said, sitting down wearily next to the holochess board, "is _how_ Vader knew we were there."

No one was more surprised than Luke when he heard Aurora's voice.

"He knew because I told him."

They were all staring at her in various postures of disbelief.

"_What?"_ Leia gasped, jerking upright.

"I told him." The other woman repeated. Her answer was for the princess, but her eyes never left Luke's.

"Why?" His voice was studiously calm, belying the tumult of emotions roiling through him.

"Because I knew we were going to need help getting out of there."

"And you thought _Vader_ was going to help?" Leia asked scathingly. She was absolutely furious, mainly because all of the doubts she'd had about Aurora directly after Bespin had just come surging back to the front of her mind.

Aurora glanced pointedly at the viewport. "Didn't he?"

Luke, who had remained silent during the exchange, his eyes locked on Aurora's face, suddenly stood up and grabbed her arm, dragging her to her feet. "Excuse us a moment." Without another word, he pulled her out of the hold and into one of the cabins.

There was an awkward silence left behind them until Leia broke it. "What could she possibly have been thinking?"

"Maybe exactly what she said; we were going to need help getting out of there." Lando offered.

"From _Vader_?" Leia asked again.

The gambler shrugged. "It worked."

"Yes, but why. Why would Vader help us escape?" She'd tried not to reveal any of her doubts, but something must have crept into her voice.

Chewie growled, a frown distorting his features.

"Chewie says she must have had a reason." Lando translated. "We should give her the benefit of the doubt."

"For how long?" The princess responded, wrapping her arms around herself as if suddenly cold. "How long do we keep on trusting someone despite the evidence against them?"


	38. Chapter 38

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Author's Note: I'm sorry for the long delay in updating this. But this section has given me horrid problems. It simply did not want to be written, no matter how I tried. I'm still not happy with it, and I apologize for the less than stellar quality, but frankly I'm sick of working on it.

Oh, and several of you expressed sadness over Dash's demise. Not to worry. As many of you may know, _Shadows of the Empire_ is actually a novelization of the video game of the same name; if you ever played it through to the end, then you know that once you beat the last level, there is a short clip in which we get to see Dash and Leebo flying away, unharmed. Apparently they went to lightspeed right before the big meteor hit the _Outrider._ However, to my knowledge, Dash has never returned in any of the other _Star Wars _novels, so apparently he served his purpose. Still, it's nice to think that he's out there somewhere in the galaxy, as obnoxious and cocksure as ever.

Enjoy.

Luke nearly shoved Aurora through the door, but she kept her balance as she turned to face him. She could feel the anger surging through him and knew it was aimed directly at her. She'd known at the time he'd be furious with her, but better that than the alternative. Anything was better than the alternative.

"What the hell were you thinking?" He demanded the second the door had closed behind them.

She took a deep breath, dreading this but knowing it couldn't be avoided. "Okay, I know you're mad –"

"_You think_?" Luke said with horrible sarcasm.

"But if you would just _listen_ for a minute." She continued, ignoring him. "Then maybe you can understand exactly what I was doing."

Luke gestured expansively for her to continue, even the movement of his hand transmitting sarcastic anger.

Aurora forced herself to remain still and not pace around the small room. It would look too defensive. "I knew as soon as Leia explained her plan to me that it was a bad idea; there was no way you weren't going to come after us. Even though Coruscant was the absolutely _last_ place you should have been. But Leia didn't listen to me; she thought you'd listen to reason – that for once you'd be smart." She cast an ironic glance at him, but Luke's face didn't so much as twitch. Aurora winced. _Okay, not ready for jokes yet._

"I started trying to think of a way to head you off immediately, but even if I could have gotten a message to you, I'd doubted you'd listen to me anymore than you would have Leia. And frankly, I didn't have the faintest idea where you were; I knew you wouldn't go back to Tatooine. So then I decided that the best thing I could do was to get Leia and myself out of there as fast as possible, so you'd have no reason to even get in the vicinity of Coruscant. The problem was, getting out of there turned out to be harder than I thought. We were under surveillance all the time, and Xizor contacted Leia frequently. I never knew when he'd come looking for her. I was running out of time fast. Then I had my own personal meeting with Xizor and - "

"Wait – what? What personal meeting?" Luke demanded.

Surprised at his sharp tone of voice, she glanced at him. "It wasn't anything important. He just wanted to have a little chat to discuss his options regarding me, which were basically to hold me as bait for you or to kill me, and risk ticking off the Emperor, who is apparently quite interested in me. "

"Oh, no, not important at all." Luke scoffed. "After all discussions regarding your continued existence are so passé after all."

Aurora's winced again. The disdain coating his words was very nearly venomous. He was _really_ angry.

"I just meant that the important part of the conversation came when Xizor had to make a comm. call and I realized that he had Vader's personal comlink. I started to think about what I could do with that. We know that Vader wants you alive – "

Luke made a sudden uncontrolled movement that had her stopping midsentence.

She hesitated, and her voice was gentle when she spoke next. "Luke, regardless of whether what he told you was the truth or not, he _does _want you alive. You've been Alive Only since the moment your name appeared on the Most Wanted list and, let's face it, from what you told me, he could have killed you on Bespin if he'd wanted to. But he didn't. For whatever reason, he wants you alive."

Luke had turned away from her slightly, so that she couldn't see his face at all or how he was reacting to her words, but the line of his shoulders looked tense. She hated that she was hurting him with this, but it had to be said.

She continued reluctantly. "However, Xizor clearly didn't want you alive, which put him in direct conflict with Vader. I'd heard a few things previously about their rivalry, and Xizor didn't sound exactly friendly when he tried to reach him, so I began to wonder if maybe I could play them against each other. After I was sent back to my room, I sliced the computer and figured out a way to get back into Xizor's office and into his files. Then I contacted Vader." She shrugged, as if to imply how easy it had all been.

"And?" Luke asked, after a moment when it was clear she wasn't going to continue.

"Pretty much what you'd expect. I told him someone was trying to kill you and that he might want to put a stop to it, seeing as he was so interested in your welfare; he made some demands, I refused them, he refused to help, I pretended not to care, repeat." She hesitated, wondering if she should tell him about that brief moment of regret she had sensed from the Dark Lord, but decided not to. Luke didn't need anymore confusion regarding Vader at the moment.

Luke turned back around, studying her face. "And so, what? He finally agreed to help?"

Aurora bit her lip. "Well, not exactly. He basically said that if you couldn't protect yourself from some lousy bounty hunters, then he wasn't that interested in you."

Luke snorted. "How generous of him." He paced a few steps around the room, obviously still trying to shed some of the agitated energy imbuing him. Then he suddenly stopped as a thought occurred to him. "Wait a minute – you said bounty hunters. How did he know to go after Xizor?"

"Damn, I was really hoping you'd missed that." Aurora dropped onto the bunk behind her, too tired to even try to keep up a façade anymore. It didn't matter anyway. When Luke heard the next bit, he was going to go ballistic, regardless of how she said it. "When he didn't show any signs of being willing to help, I sort of hinted that someone more powerful might be behind the bounty on you…then I sort of…told him to trace the link call and disconnected."

Luke spun on one heel, staring at her in disbelief. "You told him to trace the link call? You pretty much told him to come find you!"

"Well, I – "

"Need I remind you exactly whose name is directly below mine on that Most Wanted list? Hell, you just told me that Xizor said the Emperor is interested in you. How stupid can you be?" Luke's voice was getting louder with every word.

She winced. "Yeah, well, I didn't really plan on still being there when Vader arrived."

"Vader's the kriffing Dark Lord of the Sith. You don't think he could have tracked your Force presence? And what about Leia? She's in the top ten too. What would have happened to her?"

Now that was going to far; it was one thing to be ticked off at her for risking herself, but he had no business implying that she would risk anyone else. She shot up off the bunk, getting in his face. "I would _never_ have allowed anything to happen to Leia. I planned on getting her out of there as fast as I could and then separating. She has Alliance contacts on Coruscant. They would have been able to get her back to the Fleet safely."

"While you did what?" Luke asked, "Led Vader on a merry little chase all over the planet?" He stared into her eyes, a sudden horrid idea occurring to him. "You were planning on using yourself as bait to lead him away from me, weren't you?"

Aurora looked back, unable to look away from those blue eyes so close to her own. "Yes," she said flatly.

He froze for a moment, the color draining from his face, before swearing sulfurously and spinning around to slam his fist into the wall.

Aurora jumped at the sudden violence of the act, staring at Luke's back as he stood there silently, obviously striving for control.

When he did finally speak, his voice was rough with emotion. "You will _never_ put yourself at risk like that again to keep me safe. Do you understand?"

Her eyes widened in disbelief and then narrowed as the temper she'd been repressing surged. "Excuse me?"

"_Do you understand_?" He shouted.

Aurora had never wanted to hit someone so much in her life. Her fists were clenched so tightly the bones ached. She didn't even try to keep her voice down. "I understand perfectly, you arrogant, overprotective, banthaheaded son of a sith. I understand it's completely a double standard."

Luke jerked around to stare at her. "What – "

"How is what you were doing any different? You knew you were putting yourself at risk coming after Leia and me on Coruscant, but you did it anyway, to save us. So how is that any different?"

"Because –" Luke struggled to put his thoughts into words. But how could he explain this terrible, all-consuming sense of fear that was tearing through him at the idea of her in Vader's hands?

"Exactly." Aurora said grimly, after watching him struggle.

Luke swore again and took several agitated steps around the room, feeling Aurora's gaze on him.

"I'll tell you what," She said contemplatively, seating herself on the bunk again. "I'll promise to never do it again – if you promise to do the same."

Luke turned to face her, his reply coming immediately. "I can't do that."

"Neither can I."

They stared at each other across the width of the small cabin; a gulf that suddenly seemed a lot larger than it was. Neither seemed able to find the words to bridge it. Aurora opened her mouth, to say something, anything, but even she was shocked at what popped out.

"Is this because of what happened on Tatooine?"

Luke's eyes widened in stunned horror. "What?" He croaked, unable to believe she had brought that up. They had both been so careful to ignore any reference to that night…up until now.

"Is all of this overprotectiveness because we slept together?" She clarified. Her voice was steady, but there was color rising in her cheeks, a sure indication that she wasn't as calm as she appeared.

Luke was gratified to see it because his own face felt hot enough to fry an egg on. "Aurora –"

"Because it's no big deal, really." She continued, speaking too quickly. "It was just sex, right?"

"Uh, right." Luke said, uncertain if he was supposed to agree with her or not.

"I mean, people have sex all the time, right? It doesn't have to mean anything. It's just physical."

"Sure." He replied automatically, his mouth moving without the benefit of his brain, which had shut down in shock.

She was off the bunk again and pacing around the room now, like a caged rancor. "Sex is a natural function; it's a hormonal response. We're both young, healthy, we were stuck alone, living in close proximity to each other, there's obviously an attraction between us, and we were dealing with a lot of stress. So, actually, it was rather inevitable." She concluded.

"Absolutely." Luke agreed. At this point, he probably would have agreed to anything just to get her to stop talking about it. The conversation was bringing back some particularly vivid memories.

"After all, sex is a known stress reliever, so I'm surprised, considering the shavit that goes on in our lives, that we haven't ended up in bed before this." She said brightly.

Luke did his level best to keep his eyes away from the bunk behind her. After all, he was feeling considerably stressed at the moment. "Right. I mean – "

But Aurora had continued speaking, ignoring his pitiful attempts to be coherent. "So, since it was obviously just physical, and it only happened the one time -" Luke's eyes flashed up to hers and she blushed, "Uh, the one night, then it shouldn't be a problem. We can both just pretend it never happened and go on with the ways things used to be."

She turned to him, this time obviously expecting an answer.

Luke knew what he should say, knew what the smart thing to say would be. He needed to agree with her, and put their whole relationship back on the right track: friends and partners, but not lovers. Never lovers. The only problem was, he couldn't quite get his tongue to wrap itself around the words, because he'd be lying if he agreed with her. It hadn't been just physical, at least not on his part. And the idea that it might have been on hers, was killing him. But he couldn't say that, because it obviously wasn't what she wanted to hear. Aurora was doing her best to put the whole thing behind them and move forward.

Which was really what he wanted, right?

_No, _a small voice in his head whispered. What he really wanted was to grab her right now and never let her go, regardless of what the rest of the galaxy needed or wanted. To shut everything and everyone else out and just lose himself in her.

But that wasn't the Jedi way.

So, ignoring the way his heart was slowly bleeding away in his chest, he met her eyes and said firmly. "No problem."

"Great." Aurora smiled back at him.

And neither one acknowledged by even the flicker of an eyelash that they were both lying through their teeth.


	39. Chapter 39

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Star Wars, other than Aurora. It all belongs to the bearded genius in flannel. As this is based on the book, some of the dialogue is taken verbatim from _Shadows of the Empire_. That belongs to Steve Perry and George Lucas. I do not intend any copyright violation and am not making any profit from this.

Luke emerged from the cabin feeling as if he'd been wrung dry. He was grateful to find the main lounge area empty. He'd been certain that Leia would be waiting out there to ambush him, demanding to know what was going on, and he was in no mood for a dissection of his thoughts and feelings. Right now he felt too raw to even want to think about what he was feeling, let alone discuss it with anyone else.

But Leia was nowhere in sight. A brief touch of the Force located her aft, in another of the cabins, Han's if he wasn't mistaken. Banging noises from that direction also indicated that Chewie was working on one of the _Falcon's_ systems, as usual. He had no idea where the droids were.

With relief, he headed forward, stepping into the dim cockpit. He wasn't surprised to find Lando sitting in the pilot's seat, his feet up on the control board, staring contemplatively out the viewport.

Luke dropped into the oversize co-pilot's seat next to him, with a suppressed groan. He felt exhausted, more from the emotional rollercoaster he'd been on than any of the physical activity of the past few days.

"What's our ETA?"

"We'll drop out of hyperspace in a few hours for a course correction and for Leia to get the current coordinates for _Home One_, then, hopefully, it's a straight shot."

"Let's hope so." Luke said wearily, running his hand back through his hair.

Lando glanced over at him sympathetically and slid a glass half full of an amber colored liquid to him. "Drink?"

Grateful, Luke scooped it up and took a large drink, feeling the familiar burn of Corellian whiskey slide down his throat. It pooled warmly in his stomach, and he felt muscles relax that he hadn't even been aware were tensed. "Thanks."

Lando shrugged. "You looked like you could use it."

An ironic smile tugged at Luke's mouth. "That's a tactful way of putting it. I guess we were pretty loud."

White teeth flashed under the neat mustache. "Well, you were audible. Let's just stick with that. Not," he clarified. "That we could hear what you were saying. Just _how_ you were saying it."

Luke sighed. "Great. So much for maintaining that vaunted Jedi calm and impassivity."

Lando took the glass back and took a sip. "Aurora was yelling just as much as you were." He pointed out.

"Yeah, well, she's supposed to be calm and impassive too." Luke shook his head. "Our master would _not _be pleased."

"If it makes you feel any better, neither of you seem to yell very much most of the time. Just – " He broke off.

"Just around each other." Luke finished. "That's the problem." He took the glass back, draining the rest of the whiskey and starring at the shimmering starlines of hyperspace. "That's the big problem."

Wisely, Lando said nothing, simply grabbing the bottle off the floor next to him and refilling the glass Luke held.

Luke glanced at it, smiling slightly. "Everything looks better with a little Corellian whiskey?"

"That's Han's philosophy." Lando replied, replacing the bottle.

"Then what's yours?"

"Everything get's _forgotten, _for a while anyway, with a _lot_ of Corellian whiskey."

Luke was surprised to feel a chuckle emerge. He didn't think he'd ever laugh again, as dramatic as that sounded. "That's a damn good philosophy." It probably wasn't a very Jedi-like thing to do, but damn it, right now he didn't _feel_ like a Jedi. He felt like a man who had just let go of the one thing in the entire galaxy that could make him happy. "And one that I can really get behind right now."

"I thought you might."

_Page Break_

Aurora sat stiffly on the bunk, long after Luke had left the cabin. She didn't know why she felt this horrid weight dragging at her, making her feel depressed and miserable. After all, this whole thing had been her idea. She was the one who had proposed just pretending that the whole thing had never happened, so that they could get back to just being friends. She deliberately straightened her shoulders from their slump.

It was for the best; Luke obviously didn't want their relationship to cross this line. After all, he was the one who had snuck out of her bed the first chance he got and hadn't mentioned it since. Nor had he argued when she suggested this. In fact, he'd agreed pretty damn quickly.

Aurora shoved down the lick of anger she felt. He had a right to his feelings, and if this was what he wanted, then this was what was going to happen.

They were friends; just friends.

And why did that thought make her so damn miserable?

She pushed the heels of her hands into her eyes, trying to drive away these thoughts and the hot, burning sensation behind her eyes.

_Damn it, stop._

How pathetic was she? She was not going to cry over Luke Skywalker. She was not going to be that woman, obsessing over a man who didn't want her.

She pushed off the bunk impatiently. Sitting here alone was just going to make this worse, giving her time to dwell on it. Brooding was Luke's thing, not hers and it was time to stop.

She'd told him they would pretend it had never happened, and it was time to hold up her end of the bargain.

She deliberately squared her shoulders, ran a hand over her hair, and smoothed down the front of her tunic.

She was starting fresh, as of now.

With renewed determination to keep her vow of platonic friendship, even if it killed her, Aurora walked out of the cabin – and right into Leia.

_Damn it._

She cast her eyes up to the ceiling. Today was just not her day.

_Page Break_

Leia took one look at Aurora standing in front of her and her eyes flashed.

"I want to talk to you."

"Somehow I thought you might." Aurora muttered.

Leia ignored this. "I want to know what's going on and I want to know right now."

She'd managed to restrain herself when Luke and Aurora had disappeared into the cabin, even though she'd wanted to barge in there and demand some answers. And when the voices from behind the door had become audibly louder, she'd followed Lando's murmured suggestion that they give them some privacy, and had retreated to Han's quarters, even though she desperately wanted to know what the two of them were arguing about. But enough was enough. This was no longer a matter of privacy; this was a matter of Alliance security and it was her duty and responsibility to find out what Aurora was concealing.

With that in mind, she'd tossed aside her normal good manners and made the demand of the other woman. Even though she knew it was rude and abrasive of her. Some things were more important than manners, despite what her aunts had thought.

The problem was, she had never considered for one moment that Aurora might simply refuse to tell her. But that's exactly what she did now.

Those expressive green eyes regarded her steadily for a minute and then Aurora said simply. "No."

Leia's mouth opened in astonishment, but nothing came out at first. She finally managed a strangled, "What?"

"No, I'm not going to tell you what's going on. I told you once already, Leia, that this wasn't all mine to tell. Nothing's changed since then."

"Nothing except you're in direct contact with Darth Vader!"

Aurora appeared to consider this. "Was. Was in direct contact with Vader. Once and once only, and that was only because the opportunity came up."

"Once is more than enough to cause doubt." Leia countered.

The other woman nodded. "I know, and I wish I could say something that would relieve that doubt, but I can't. I'm sorry, Leia. I wish this didn't have to cause you problems."

"That's not enough, Aurora. Not anymore."

"It's all I have for you."

Leia sighed, suddenly tired. "I have to go to the Council with this. You know that." She wanted to trust Aurora, but there were just too many things stacking up against her.

Aurora just looked at her, those eyes direct. "You do what you have to."

She moved past Leia, somehow managing to not brush against her at all, even though the corridor was narrow and Leia standing squarely in it.

Leia didn't move. She wanted to yell and scream in frustration, pound her fist against the wall and stamp her feet, however immature and futile it was. Because the truth was, Aurora had called her bluff. She couldn't go to the Supreme Council with this because it would implicate Luke too. They'd want to know why Vader was so interested in Luke alone, why he would bother saving them, and Leia simply didn't have the answers. Lately, it seemed like she didn't have the answer to anything. All it would do was cause doubt and dissension in the ranks of the Alliance at a time when they desperately needed to band together.

_And if Aurora is a traitor_? A small voice whispered in the back of her head.

Could she risk not warning Mon and the others? Or was the greater risk not trusting someone who had come through again and again for the Alliance?

Frustrated and exhausted, she slumped down in the corridor, the deck plating cold through her pants, but she didn't care. She just felt tired, and confused, and alone. Very, very alone.

"Oh, Han." She whispered.

_Page Break_

At the end of the corridor, a small astromech stood silently, ostensibly repairing one of the _Falcon's _navigational systems, it had actually been watching the encounters between its organic companions.

Artoo Detoo had watched as his master had emerged from the cabin, leaning his head back in apparent exhaustion against the door, a strange expression on his face, before turning and heading towards the cockpit. A short time later, Aurora had also appeared, the same expression showing on her face briefly before it had been wiped away upon spotting Princess Leia. Now, the princess sat on the floor in very nearly the same spot, and that same look covered her own face.

Artoo beeped softly to himself. He knew himself abnormally intelligent for a droid; his master never allowed memory wipes for him, and as a result, he had developed his own, unique personality. Consequently, he was better versed in organic relations than many of his peers. So he knew now that what he was seeing was unhappiness. He also had a pretty good idea what was causing all of this unhappiness, but he was interested in hearing Threepio's views. Not that he believed the protocol droid would be helpful. For all of his interaction with organics and his knowledge of more than six million languages, the other droid remained strangely oblivious sometimes to the subtle undercurrents of communication. Still, sometimes just arguing with Threepio was helpful in sorting out his own theories and understandings. Because it was very apparent that something was wrong with his friends, and that, once again, it was going to be up to him to fix everything.

Chirping to himself determinedly, Artoo Detoo set off to find the gold protocol droid and begin to put everything back the way it was supposed to be. After all, who better than a droid?

Fin.

A/N: Well, there it is. The end of _Shadows of the Empire. _It turned out much longer than I expected; originally it was merely intended to be an interlude between _Empire _and _Jedi_, but it got away from me. I hope you enjoyed it anyway, and a ton of thanks to everyone who reviewed. It gives me a warm, gooey feeling every time I see that review number change. Hopefully, you'll all be back for the next installment. It may, however, take a little longer than I expected because last night my cat tipped a glass of water over on my laptop, which contains all my notes, and I'm waiting for it to dry out to see if it still works. Cheers!


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